“Throughout human prehistory, biological change and technological change ran in parallel. Brains were increasing in size – but this was not unique to our ancestors, and can be seen across multiple hominin species. Something very complicated was going on – a kind of arms race, Tattersall suggests, in which cognitive capacity and technology reinforced each other.”

“People get so excited about new technologies. I’ve had the question so many times from young people, “What software should I use?” You know what? In your lifetime the software and the technology will change so drastically, it doesn’t matter. Ollie Johnston would turn to me and I was expecting something about arcs and lines and silhouette value and all that stuff. He would turn and say, “John, what’s the character thinking?””

Using a second language triggers the use of System 2 thinking over System 1: “Nelson Mandela seemed to have understood this dynamic decades ago when he said, “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.””