Uploaded February 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Homo sapiens was coined to refer to a new species, but it also described an unprecedented cognitive revolution within the animal realm, one that would lead to the invention of technology and scientific abstraction, alongside mythical thinking and representations of the divine. Disciplines such as archeology, evolutionary psychology, and cognitive science have shed new light on the human mind and the decisive role played by the use of language and metaphors in the development of religious belief and rationality. At the same time, they have raised new questions about the future of homo sapiens. Will the exponential development of generative AI systems transform the way we speak, think, and relate to one another? Do we need to tell new stories about what it means to be human?
Cognitive psychologist Tania Lombrozo discusses these topics and more with Wisconsin Public Radio's Steve Paulson.
February 11, 2025
The Morgan Library & Museum
Homo sapiens was coined to refer to a new species, but it also described an unprecedented cognitive revolution within the animal realm, one that would lead to the invention of technology and scientific abstraction, alongside mythical thinking and representations of the divine. Disciplines such as archeology, evolutionary psychology, and cognitive science have shed new light on the human mind and the decisive role played by the use of language and metaphors in the development of religious belief and rationality. At the same time, they have raised new questions about the future of homo sapiens. Will the exponential development of generative AI systems transform the way we speak, think, and relate to one another? Do we need to tell new stories about what it means to be human?
Cognitive psychologist Tania Lombrozo discusses these topics and more with Wisconsin Public Radio's Steve Paulson.
February 11, 2025
The Morgan Library & Museum
