Three ages and three intelligences: Exploit, explore, empower
WTI Inspiring Speaker: Alison Gopnik
Thursday, December 11, 2025
10:00 - 11:15 am
100 College Street
Floor 11, Workshop 1116
In this talk, Alison Gopnik argues that there is no such thing as general intelligence. Instead different types of intelligences trade-off against each other and are characteristic of different developmental periods. Adults characteristically engage in exploitation, while children are adapted for exploration and elders for care and cultural transmission. Gopnik will be hosted by Julia Leonard.
WTI Inspiring Speaker Series
The Wu Tsai Institute's Inspiring Speaker Series features an interdisciplinary lineup of speakers whose work reshapes how we understand the mind and brain. Talks occur monthly on Thursdays at 10:00 am, from September 2025 to May 2026, at 100 College Street. Coffee and refreshments will be available before each talk, and there will be an opportunity for questions afterward. All members of the Yale community are welcome.
If you would like to meet with a visiting speaker, please contact wti@yale.edu.