David Brooks: The social animal

www.ted.com Tapping into the findings of his latest book, NYTimes columnist David Brooks unpacks new insights into human nature from the cognitive sciences -- insights with massive implications for economics and politics as well as our own self-knowledge. In a talk full of humor, he shows how you can't hope to understand humans as separate individuals making choices based on their conscious awareness.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. Featured speakers have included Al Gore on climate change, Philippe Starck on design, Jill Bolte Taylor on observing her own stroke, Nicholas Negroponte on One Laptop per Child, Jane Goodall on chimpanzees, Bill Gates on malaria and mosquitoes, Pattie Maes on the "Sixth Sense" wearable tech, and "Lost" producer JJ Abrams on the allure of mystery. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design, and TEDTalks cover these topics as well as science, business, development and the arts. Closed captions and translated subtitles in a variety of languages are now available on TED.com, at www.ted.com/translate.

[@spunkygoldfish]

This is by far one of the best TED talks I have ever seen.

[@lenaslife]

I find this really interesting!! I love the part about how we are all seeking to become one with things.

[@SEThatered]

One of the best TEDtalks ever!

[@Jester123ish]

I'm not sure you'll ever find an 'expert' who integrates all the data into one big picture. DB seems well informed and he speaks from his own experience.

[@ChalleFoV3]

one of the best speeches of this great channel

[@gunuin]

His content about emotions and their relationship to thinking is very intriguing.

[@Neanderthalcouzin]

Wow, really great talk. Very grounded but soulful at the same time.

[@shazrinaiman]

This is the kind of talk that made me suscribe to TED. thanks.

[@nicholastrice8750]

What a surprisingly insightful TED talk.

[@WesleySmith1920]

He just came out with a new book The Second Mountain, along these lines. Can’t wait to read it

[@josiestraka]

This reminds me of some of what we are studying (and living into ) at context.org Some overlap at least, I loved this talk.

[@david0aloha]

@FreestyleBrain Go with your gut, but don't be afraid to sit back and reflect on activities/experiences you've had in the past that you enjoyed. I was initially going to go engineering, but then I went Kinesiology. I wound up leaving that after doing 1.5 years, taking a couple years off of school, teaching myself programming, and going back in computer science. I've now finished creating a small game and am working on a very cool project with people I know. I'm happy with my choices.

[@P00P0STER0US]

Terrific talk!

[@OpakeArawra2]

this talk really hit home with me. now my soul hurts. sigh.

[@DoodleTaffy]

I liked the stuff he said in the second half, it was more thought provoking & made a lot of good points.

[@best547]

Great Techniques. Good Video.

[@dynamiccosine1]

Good talk!

[@krazykorican]

david brooks inspires me. he all hamiltonian and reinhold niebuhr. rock on sir.

[@nanacindynz]

interestingly, my mum and I had a conversation similar to this talk about how we measure success a few days ago

[@brdy724]

holy shit that was good. I'm going to watch this several times tonight

[@MauroHH94]

What article about Iraq soldiers is speaking in minute 14:10 ?

[@endofthecosmos]

Very well done tedtalk.

[@Emily-Solo]

Beautiful.

[@HamsterPants522]

My name is Bart, and I love art.

[@Arcus2658]

@audiowiz It's super loud, like the old THX intro. watch?v=K3_HHZFi0As

[@david0aloha]

@ACANOFSODA Can you provide an example of a counter-argument debunking something he said?

[@7andrea2]

Brooks wrote an excellent book. I wish he would done more character development on his female protagonist.

[@roidroid]

@BestestMoron just something new and/or insightful.

[@andreeaweed]

One man with courage makes a majority.

[@Icemario87]

@DonAnonimus It's the part where he talks about the soldiers detecting "coldness" where there were landmines... but I'm willing to bet that "coldness" just means "empty." I wouldn't hang around a land mine I just planted, would you?

[@Silofosi]

Very interesting....!

[@f.puttstycker2784]

David described The Bay Area neighborhoods.

[@gunuin]

@sausage4mash Some of those acts were rational plays on the irrational emotions. I think the point of the talk is that we cannot really separate ration and emotion as we have been taught to, but that the two are bound together, much like the conscious and unconscious.

[@thedesertdweller]

@FreestyleBrain Go with your heart. If you go down a path in conflict with your "calling" you'll lose your life. On a practical note, out of the gate you may get a bigger paycheck in mechanical engineering but over the next 10 years that will fade as you lose out to those in engineering who have the passion. But if you follow your heart you'll end up finding a place where those skills are valued more and you'll be the one with passion which should make you some decent money in almost any field.

[@arian50]

BEST SPEECH THIS WEEK. THE PART ABOUT THE SUBCONSCIOUS WAS THE SHIT!!!

[@bowerbjo]

@xNickTheBrickx You are very polite to call them "jokes"

[@Trazynn]

@audiowiz Indeed. "AARGH the intro!" -turn the volume down - "mumblemumblemumble"

[@Jester123ish]

Yes, some of the TED talks are slipping, that I agree with.

[@hobbytoby8887]

how epic!

[@PixelSlayer247]

That's the stuff.

[@mlnyonasi]

@Xiang Zhang He does (at 9:45) that him talking about emotion is like ghandi talking about gluttony...

[@qwaszx1299]

Closing also

[@WalterWalkie]

interesting ideas but very general, i guess he didnt have time to get too specific , i'm gonna check out the book . i think we should come up with a better name than new humanism

[@JamesDubreze]

When they finally do, that decision can be vetoed, challenge by congress or slowed down through bureaucracy. Moral values are often discouraged in foreign policy due to potential conflict that can elevate through the effort of securing interest, especially when promises have been broken. Therefore, the human experience of a good life is forever shrinking as conflict across the globe continues. Sorry there’s no happy ending…peoplebreeze com

[@FreethinkingSecularist]

@ElProximo yes

[@deanandthebeans857]

David, please stand for President, we need you.

[@fayeadams3317]

Agreed. If only....

[@ToddHowardWithAGun]

"A disproportionate number of Dennis's become Dentists and Lawrences Laywers." I'd like to see the data on such an extraordinary claim.

[@t3tsuyaguy1]

@bogdanbelcea Suggesting that someone may be wrong is not an argument.

[@duckbrew]

1:12. Pull them drawers up buddy!

[@aweescotsdog8358]

I like David Brooks. He is thoughtful and he seems considerate and kind. However, as a Scot, I am not sure that the relation between sentiment and reason attributed to David Hume is entirely correct. It may be, I am no scholar on the matter, however, from the little that I know, I understand Hume's view to be that that the "passions" should govern that, over which, one should apply one's "reason", rather than the notion that one's passion and reason are somehow opposed. Anyway, since I am obviously not a philosopher, and as I have also, in all probability, made several logical fallacies, please go easy on me! By all means tell me more about Hume and why my scant knowledge of him is inaccurate! Slàinte

[@Arcessitor]

First great TED Talk in months. Though this person seems to assume intelligence and social intelligence are not related. In Psychology (and Neuroscience), we presume this is the case. (g + i)

[@theseanze]

lost me on the Hofstadter panpsychism, but a "new humanism" is definitely something that's beginning to take form and should

[@gunuin]

I really enjoyed the talk, but I almost gave up on it because it takes him almost 9 minutes to get to the crux of his argument.

[@papalosopher]

For more on how we are children of the French Enlightenment, read "Voltaire's Bastards" by the greatest Canadian philosopher of our age, John Ralston Saul.

[@davidbryan1157]

2 minutes into the movie and I want to fix the back of his blazer sooo bad

[@108nighthawk]

I know, talk about social skills...

[@anapaulaobradovic753]

😂

[@fayeadams3317]

If that's what you got out of Brooks' talk, I think you missed the point.

[@zhangxiang23]

a great book that brook wrote, but his speech is with the same tune as if he disconnects with his emotion when saying emotion is important. His voice trembles perhaps he was nervous, but a very humble man indeed

[@WesleySmith1920]

Xiang Zhang, to your point, I actually think he isn’t a natural speaker and is quite nervous. Which makes his commitment to speaking all the more interesting for me

[@stephenlosch2015]

He is a person that is traveling territory that is new for him, emotion. If you take the path, wisdom path is to have bravery to explore your emotional life. Tremble in that path is natural.

[@MarkoKraguljac]

@gunuin Exactly.

[@wdcsucks1]

@audiowiz yeh, there is something creepy in that sound!

[@Kojak7snap]

@bogdanbelcea Because you can't help it, and had better learn to work with yourself rather than against. Everybody feels emotional attachment to the ideas they espouse; if you admit that, you can look more closely at ideas, and compensate for your attachment to some extent. Or were you wondering about the evolutionary advantage of such a seemingly flawed system? That would be an interesting question to ask.

[@ThenmozhiTalks]

🔥🔥🔥🎉

[@HamOnCan]

mindblowing insight. only we now need see our subconsciousness as the universe expressing itself through us. In chinese medine water reads of (holds) the emotions. emotions speak of feelings, and feelings are the language of the soul. and the soul is the cosmic expression and manifestion of consciousness . . .through which the universe expresses itself in matter

[@atownlefttrain]

@mikaelfodor If you didn't learn anything it is because you failed to be open enough to learn; because it was against your own prejudices to allow yourself to learn. It is impossible not to learn, for familiarity isn't absolute truth, for there is nothing in this world that you completely know, including yourself .I can learn something by looking at something I've seen a thousand times before, I can learn by staring at the back of my hand. Really, learn to learn, set yourself free.

[@elchafa337]

@audiowiz ...or at least turn it down a few notches,,....,.,,,

[@Kojak7snap]

@bogdanbelcea Albert Einstein rejected Quantum physics on essentially emotional grounds, believing that "god would not play dice with the universe." He was wrong, but the story shows a hugely influential modern genius, unabashedly relying on intuition and non-rational thought. So many great ideas, modern and ancient, came not from logical progression, but in a flash of intuition, later confirmed by careful research. Both intuition and research have their place.

[@holdmybeer]

@audiowiz yeah ive complained about it too, they don't care if it hurt's peoples ears and is very annoying.

[@t3tsuyaguy1]

@fabiochrist "Your wrong" & "I've heard that before", are not arguments.

[@kimberley1235]

I need someone to remind me about the subconscious mind gets satisfaction from love.

[@hamandchees3]

Featuring the bourgeoisie humor of David Brooks, who apparently only read Sociobiology last year or so.

[@kiddhitta]

who would have thought dane cook would be doing a TEDtalk. hahah am i right. am i right!

[@MiCKi914]

Coming from somebody who applied to Harvard last year and sincerely wanted to get in in order to be surrounded by interesting, intellectual people (not just to get a good job) but was rejected...ouch. Don't stereotype. :-/ We're just trying to work the system, man, and if that means we have to play a musical instrument AND do community service AND take a bazillion APs...that's what we'll do.

[@Arcessitor]

This person has never met Dutch politicians before. ;)

[@Svengalish0000]

lol the point *whooosh* that's the sound as it went over your head

[@Jester123ish]

Because journalists can communicate.

[@verstwo2]

@Haduct - meh...it's ok.

[@techhungry1]

After the Vatican could just get rid of purgatory then it should be clear how tangible of a place heaven or hell is. That is if you define a real place as a physical space but I don’t think many Christians believe if you fly a space ship somewhere far enough you can find heaven. It doesn’t exist in the sense you or a literalist are speaking but as a parallel to Buddhist ideas I think that those planes of existence could be just as real as this one.

[@sixtiksix]

@Terje1337 yep.....again......

[@atownlefttrain]

@sixtiksix An idiot is an individual who is pre-cognizant, they literally have no ability to think or formulate thoughts. Though I could translate your comment as such, once he started challenging my own beliefs the cognitive dissonance made me uncomfortable, and instead of being able or willing to see things in a different way, I put up my walls and dismissed him with a word that is hardly descriptive. It's okay to be scared, we are all scared.

[@Svengalish0000]

does a doctor need to have cancer to be able to diagnose cancer?

[@JamesDubreze]

Foreign Policy is driven by economic means, often pressured by interest group. The choices that are available in foreign policy are greatly influenced by profit and security. Foreign policy evaluates corporate interest with government capabilities in relation to public concerns. Politicians are not philosophers; they often do not look at the overall consequence of their action. peoplebreeze com

[@OMG_BeCkY]

This dude is all over the place...I felt like I was listening to Charlie Sheen.

[@bridgam]

David Brooks... and he writes books...

[@TheAnubisDrake]

Blah, blah, blah.......The future is brighter than I thought. That is the entire show. Don't waste 18 mins of your time.

[@KladionicaCity]

I wish people would pay more attention to what someone does instead of what someone says.

[@bananewane1402]

9/10 of the poor decisions I've made were due to me listening to my heart and not my mind.

[@JizzyF83]

Working leads to money, it gets blown on nightclubs, you go back to work Monday and the cycle repeats itself

[@DungeonMetal]

This comment = gold.

[@lendavis]

Why is he reading a speech when all other TED presenters do it without one?

[@fayeadams3317]

Really?

[@mikaelfodor]

Picked an interesting topic and managed to say nothing of any worth, I didn't learn anything from that.

[@markstewart4501]

David Brook calls Edward Snowden a delusional individual, but the NSA paid Snowden $200,000 a year. David Brook is aiding Big Brother.

[@GlueRman1]

@ACANOFSODA I guess the whole point was for you to FEEL he was right! :-p Well, that's truthiness for ya! Not that he's wrong, neither that he's right.

[@sausage4mash]

well, I think he was saying decision makers should show a little more empathy and compassion but then he was also saying bad decisions are emotionally biased ? so whatever a confused meandering convoluted speech that seems to be the new TED style . It will be" feeling our inner child next ", or have we had that speech already :) well at least it was not the vacuous emotive twaddle that is TED women ,almost on a par though .

[@Terje1337]

He explained why Mitt Romney will win the republican nomination, which means that we will have a question between bad and worse again.

[@techhungry1]

@TruthJockey In my opinion for a Christian that practices their religion appropriately fear is not the motivation to do things, when you act out of fear you distance yourself from the lord and it is acting out of love that brings you closer. So rather than the fear of hell being the incentive to do good works it is the love of the Lord and is will.

[@brettygood1]

Great talk, though the digression with the jokes gets a little bit annoying...

[@slicbro]

Interesting subject. I always thought david brooks was one of the smarter republicans.

[@fayeadams3317]

He's brilliant. Moderate. The older I get, the more moderate I become. He's one of my favorite journalists and authors.

[@gunuin]

@TheRealYaar you sure?

[@aoeaoae]

IOW, that we are social animals, I see as impediment, not something to cultivate. One concrete example: it is natural for humans to form hierarchies, pyramids with few on top treading over those below. Is this something you would consciously choose as an ideal, a master/slave civilization? Obviously the Free World chose otherwise, it chose parliaments and free discourse. So it's not something to embrace unconditionally, most of it is something to fight against.

[@sethlockman]

Sounds like this guy is talking about theory of mind and emergent systems theory. Maybe if we standardized the language we could fix society faster.

[@NatasjavanDijknah]

Is it my lack of knowledge of American politics or did he in deed only mention right-wings?

[@108nighthawk]

You are correct. TedTalks can often (notice I didn't say always) have some type of left wing message or bias. However, other times, the right-wing is represented. Unfortunately, in the U.S. (at least) people can be so vulcanized by their politics, that they can make an argument about gravity between liberal gravity and conservative gravity... America, America, God shed his grace on thee...

[@natedejuggla]

@apocaRUFF totally caught that bomb on the porn joke too lol