In 2018, the great behavioral scientist Robert Sapolsky came to The Forum to discuss his bestselling book Behave, his now classic account of why humans do good and why they do bad. That program has over 221,000 views. 

Now, in his new book Determined, Sapolsky mounts a brilliant (and in his inimitable way, delightful) full-frontal assault on the pleasant fantasy that there is some separate self telling our biology what to do. 

One by one, Sapolsky tackles all the major arguments for free will and takes them out, cutting a path through the thickets of chaos and complexity of science and quantum physics, as well as touching ground on some of the wilder shores of philosophy. Sapolsky applies the new understanding of life beyond free will to some of our most essential questions around punishment, morality, and living well together.  

Join Malcolm Clemens Young for a conversation with Sapolsky about his insights into free will, the monumental task of living our daily lives recognizing that we have no free will, and how that could make for a much more humane world. 

Listen
Robert Sapolsky: “I Don’t Think We Have Any Free Will Whatsoever.” | People I (Mostly) Admire

Buy The Book

“Few people understand the human brain as well as renowned neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky.” —Most Anticipated Fall Books, San Francisco Chronicle 

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About the Guest

Robert M. Sapolsky is the author of several works of nonfiction, including A Primate’s Memoir, The Trouble with Testosterone, and Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers. His 2017 book, Behave, was a New York Times bestseller and named a best book of the year by The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. He is the John A. and Cynthia Fry Gunn Professor of biology, neurology and neurosurgery at Stanford University and the recipient of a MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant.” He and his wife live in San Francisco. 

About the Moderator

The Very Rev. Dr. Malcolm Clemens Young is the dean of Grace Cathedral. He is the author of The Spiritual Journal of Henry David Thoreau and The Invisible Hand in Wilderness: Economics, Ecology, and God, and is a regular contributor on religion to the Huffington Post and San Francisco Examiner.    

About The Forum

The Forum is a series of stimulating conversations about faith and ethics in relation to the important issues of our day. We invite inspiring and illustrious people to sit down for a real conversation with the Forum’s host and with you. Our guests range from artists, inventors, and philosophers to pop culturists and elected officials, but the point of The Forum is singular: civil, sophisticated discourse that engages minds and hearts to think in new ways about the world.  More about Grace Forum Online.

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