In a major coup for the psychology department, psychologist Steven Pinker has decided to leave MIT for an appointment at Harvard, according to two Harvard professors.
Pinker is the second MIT professor whom the Harvard psychology department has successfully recruited in the last two years.
Pinker has written several successful popular science books, most recently The Blank Slate. In that book, he argued against the idea that humans are born as “blank slates.”
“He is one of the great writers of our time,” said Professor of Psychology Marc D. Hauser.
Pinker has accepted an endowed Mind, Brain, Behavior (MBB) chair in the Psychology Department, according to Hauser, who is a personal friend.
Pinker is a cognitive psychologist and works in language acquisition and conceptual development.
He joins several other leaders in language development research at Harvard, making it a major center for language studies, according to Hauser.
Professors at Harvard and MIT have been talking about Harvard’s offer since February.
There has been no official announcement, but Pinker notified Professor of Psychology Elizabeth S. Spelke and Hauser of his decision to accept Harvard’s offer yesterday morning, according to Hauser and Spelke.
Professor of Psychology Susan E. Carey alluded to his acceptance yesterday morning in her Science B-60: “Origins of Knowledge” lecture, according to students in the class. Carey co-teaches the course with Spelke.
Pinker, who could not be reached yesterday for comment last night, received his doctorate from Harvard and taught at the University for a year in 1979.
Spelke was Pinker’s colleague at MIT before she left for Harvard two years ago.
She said there was no “wrong decision” for Pinker, but she suggested that Harvard’s strong MBB initiative and faculty were a strong draw.
“MIT’s strength is in brain science, while Harvard’s is in cognitive science, so we have a stronger group working in his area of interest than MIT,” Hauser said.
In February, the head of MIT’s department of brain and cognitive science Mriganka Sur said MIT would fight to keep Pinker.
Read more in News
Scholar of Islamic Art Gets TenureRecommended Articles
-
University To Battle For MIT ProfessorHarvard’s psychology department may soon make a bid to hire away from MIT renowned cognitive scientist Steven Pinker, according to
-
Harvard Grad Found Dead In Likely SuicideJaemin Rhee ’92, a post-doctorate fellow in the lab of MIT professor and recent Harvard recruit Steven Pinker, was found
-
Steven Pinker Celebrity professor brings his ‘mind’ to HarvardJohnstone Family Professor of Psychology Steven Pinker, who returned to Harvard last fall after more than 20 years, sits in
-
Hauser Maintains Control of Harvard Lab Under SupervisionHarvard Psychology Professor Marc D. Hauser will remain in charge of his laboratory in William James Hall under “supervision established by the Dean of the [Faculty of Arts and Sciences],” a University official said yesterday.
-
Marc Hauser’s Fall From Grace
