Join Alison Gopnik for an evening exploring how understanding babies’ and young children’s ability to acquire abstract knowledge has transformed how we view human nature itself.

Human beings have a longer childhood than any other animal, and during this childhood we are helpless and dependent. This long period of helplessness is responsible for our uniquely human consciousness and our ability to learn and imagine. Our long protected childhood gives us the opportunity to learn and play, which helps us plan and work as adults, and special features of our young brains give us remarkable learning abilities. In fact, even the youngest babies have learning abilities that are more powerful than those of the smartest scientists and most advanced computers.