Steven Pinker at Microsoft

I got there early, but it was already pretty crowded.  Fortunately there was an empty seat next to Lesley and Jen so I was able to get a good spot. He also spoke this morning on Seattle radio station KUOW (download the MP3 here) and on Science Friday last week.

The basic idea is that language is a window into innate human perceptions of physics, emotions, and social relations. Study some seemingly strange attributes of language and you'll understand more of how the human brain programmed.

Here are a few of my takeaways:

• House Resolution 3687 (The Clear Airwaves Act) is a hilarious example of legislating exceptions to free speech: a U.S. law that itself contains lots of dirty words. 
• Eskimos have a zillion words for snow?  Big deal, English has at least 34 words for feces.
• Read Bruce Feiler's Pocketful of Dough for advice on how to bribe your way into a busy restaurant.  Short answer: innuendo works every time.
• U.S. President James Garfield didn't die of an assassin's bullet, but rather by poor medical treatment afterwards.  So who really killed him?

I haven't finished reading the book, but I'll write a longer summary on my personal blog when I get a chance. 

Oh, and afterwards I got a chance to ask him something I've speculated on for a long time: is there intelligent life in outer space?  Answer: no, because "intelligence" is almost by definition an anthrocentric idea. [boy, that deserves a long blog post]