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Dr. Hugo Mercier is a research scientist at the CNRS – Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (Institut Jean Nicod), where he works with the Evolution and Social Cognition team. Most of his work so far has focused on the function and workings of reasoning. Together with Dan Sperber, he wrote a book that develops and extends the argumentative theory of reasoning, called The Enigma of Reason.

In this episode, we focus on The Enigma of Reason, and talk about how reason might have evolved, and its cognitive and social function. We talk a little bit about the notion of the modular mind. Also, how cognition operates at a subconscious level; the conditions in which reason works best; if dual-process theory (the idea of us having two different cognitive systems – one more fast and frugal, and the other more deliberative) makes sense from this new perspective; what really is a “rational” behavior; and why science as a human enterprise works so well.

Time Links:

00:36 How do people perceive threat?

04:38 Fight-or-flight responses

13:04 Threat at the individual and collective levels

17:19 In-group and out-group differences

23:00 Threat in the context of politics and warfare

How people solve reasoning problems

17:16 The social function of reason

20:34 Reason works better when done in groups

24:31 Does dual-process theory (system 1 and system 2) make sense?

27:18 What is it to be rational, from an evolutionary perspective?

29:23 Why does science work so well?

32:06 Follow Dr. Mercier’s work!

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Follow Dr. Mercier’s work:

Faculty page: https://tinyurl.com/yb39w3t4

Personal website: https://tinyurl.com/d2te7pm

The Enigma of Reason: https://tinyurl.com/y8melzua

Twitter handle: @hugoreasoning

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A HUGE THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS: KARIN LIETZCKE, ANN BLANCHETTE, JUNOS, SCIMED, PER HELGE HAAKSTD LARSEN, LAU GUERREIRO, RUI BELEZA, MIGUEL ESTRADA, ANTÓNIO CUNHA, CHANTEL GELINAS, JIM FRANK, JERRY MULLER, FRANCIS FORD, AND HANS FREDRIK SUNDE!

I also leave you with the link to a recent montage video I did with the interviews I have released until the end of June 2018:

https://youtu.be/efdb18WdZUo

And check out my playlists on:

PSYCHOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/ybalf8km

PHILOSOPHY: https://tinyurl.com/yb6a7d3p

ANTHROPOLOGY: https://tinyurl.com/y8b42r7g

2.70: The Stand (Part 10)