Professor Robert Trivers
Wednesday 5 October 2011, 6:30pm
Venue TBC
In this lecture Professor Robert Trivers| will talk about his new book, Deceit and Self-Deception| which seeks to answer one of the most provocative and consequential questions to face humanity: why do we lie to ourselves?
Deception is everywhere in nature. And nowhere more so than in our own species. We humans are especially good at telling others less - or more - than the truth. Why, however, would organisms both seek out information and then act to destroy it? In short, why practice self-deception?
After decades of research, Robert Trivers has at last provided the missing theory to answer these questions. What emerges is a picture of deceit and self-deception as, at root, different sides of the same coin. We deceive ourselves the better to deceive others, and thereby reap the advantages. From space and aviation disasters to warfare, politics and religion, and the anxieties of our everyday social lives, Deceit and Self-Deception explains what really underlies a whole host of human problems. But can we correct our own biases? Are we doomed to indulge in fantasies, inflate our egos, and show off? Is it even a good idea to battle self-deception?
With his characteristically wry and self-effacing wit, Trivers reveals how he finds self-deception everywhere in his own life, and shows us that while we may not always avoid it, we can now at least hope to understand it.
'I consider Trivers one of the great thinkers in the history of Western thought' Steven Pinker
'A remarkable book, by a uniquely brilliant scientist . . . Trivers' Darwinian theory of self-deception is arguably his most provocative and interesting idea so far . . . The book is enlivened by his candid personal style, and is a pleasure to read' Richard Dawkins
Robert Trivers is one of the leading figures pioneering the field of sociobiology. He received his Bachelors degree and PhD from Harvard University. He has been on the faculty at Harvard, the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Rutgers University.
More information about this event will be available soon.