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RSA ANIMATE: Language as a Window into Human Nature
Royal Society of Arts
An RSA Animate in which Steven Pinker explains how the mind builds infinite meanings from finite language, and why people often speak indirectly. It covers ambiguity, politeness and mutual knowledge, including the emperor's new clothes example.
HN recommends it as a short, clear explanation of why people avoid saying things explicitly and how common knowledge works socially and politically.
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