What Everyone Knows You Know with Steven Pinker - StarTalk Radio Recap
Podcast: StarTalk Radio
Published: 2026-01-23
Duration: 55 min
Guests: Steven Pinker
Summary
Steven Pinker discusses the concept of common knowledge, its role in society, and how it influences everything from language to financial markets.
What Happened
Steven Pinker joins Neil deGrasse Tyson to explore the concept of common knowledge and its critical role in facilitating coordination and social interaction. Pinker elaborates on how common knowledge is not just about what is known but what everyone knows that everyone else knows, which is vital for societal functions like money, power, and even revolutions. He explains that common knowledge allows for coordination, using the example of a couple trying to meet without modern technology, illustrating how shared understanding is crucial for synchronization. The conversation touches on the importance of common knowledge in governance and institutions, emphasizing that power is largely a social construct upheld by collective belief. Pinker also highlights how humor and language both rely heavily on shared knowledge to be effective, as jokes often depend on unspoken, mutual understanding. The episode delves into nonverbal communication as well, such as blushing and eye contact, which serve as common knowledge generators by making private knowledge public. The discussion also covers how social norms and behaviors are influenced by common knowledge, with examples like veiled threats and euphemisms. Finally, they explore the implications of common knowledge on social dynamics and the potential consequences if it is manipulated or misunderstood, especially in today's polarized society.
Key Insights
- Common knowledge is not just individual knowledge but what everyone knows that everyone else knows, facilitating societal functions like the use of money and the exercise of power.
- Nonverbal communication methods such as blushing and eye contact act as generators of common knowledge by making private information publicly observable.
- Humor and language rely heavily on shared knowledge, as jokes often depend on mutual understanding that is unspoken yet universally recognized.
- Social norms and behaviors, such as veiled threats and euphemisms, are influenced by common knowledge, which can impact social dynamics if manipulated or misunderstood.