The MIT Press releases Out of the Cave: A Natural History of Mind and Knowing by Mark Johnson and Don Tucker on August 17. What do we know, and how do we know it? I can’t think of any more essential question to the human experience. Or to the scientific method. Objectivity and subjectivity. Thoughts and emotions. Big ideas. Mark Johnson and Don Tucker responded to my interview questions recently about their new book and the story behind it. Jill Swenson: Mark, how did you and Don decide to work together on the book? Mark Johnson: Several years ago, Don contacted me to say that some of his neuroscience research supported, enriched, and extended some of my work on embodied cognition theory. We began to chat by email occasionally and soon discovered how much our general views were compatible and mutually reinforcing. This led to a series of conversations over lunch where we began to sketch the outline for Out of the Cave. We gradually found a way to blend Don’s research with my philosophical perspective on human experience, language, cognition, and values. These were exciting meetings for me, because Don could supply the relevant neuroscience research for some of the positions I had developed in earlier work. Jill Swenson: How does this new theory of embodied knowing build upon the work you did with George Lakoff? Mark Johnson: George Lakoff and I got interested in the role of the body in the development of experience, thought, and values in the late 1970s.…

Anyone who enjoys the painstakingly difficult process of writing probably has a love for words, which inspires their masochistic writer’s journey. Those who understand the slight intricacies of words and the importance of sentence structure choose their statements wisely, editing, re-editing, and editing again. This process is multiplied twofold for a writer who speaks more than one language, carrying with them the difficulty of creating their desired outcome while thinking in two (or more) languages. In my studies, I trade off writing in French and English. I’m not claiming to be bilingual by any means, but I understand the difficulty of translation. For example, I came to understand that “poser un lapin” does not mean “to pose a rabbit” in direct translation, but is a colloquial expression for standing someone up on a date. My time studying both English and French has provided me with invaluable knowledge about the process of writing, mainly two distinct aspects: the difficulty of exact translation and the desire to sound like a local. One of Swenson Book Development’s clients, Carolyn Porter, stumbled upon several French letters and set off on a quest to understand their meaning. Despite her fervor and passion for these letters, she did not speak French and hired a translator. This translator, Louise, was essential in Carolyn’s journey to learn about the life of Marcel, his obligatory service in Germany during the occupation, and his relationship with his family. Carolyn sought out a native speaker to overcome the dissonance of direct…

Cayuga Nature Center sits on 100 acres overlooking the  largest of the Finger Lakes with a lodge built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s as a “preventorium,” a temporary home for families members of tuberculosis patients at the nearby “sanatorium” (near the present Cayuga Medical Center). The lodge, recently renovated, is quiet and comfortable in the winter months. Writing workshops are being offered for the first time in winter 2013 to take advantage of this new coziness in what had formerly been a ‘down time’ for the nature center. During the month of February three workshops are offered on Saturdays, with lunch included, at Cayuga Nature Center. Descriptions of each are offered below. Pre-registration is required at www.cayugawriting.com Memoir Writing Workshop  Saturday, February 2, 2013; 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. With Jill Swenson Swenson Book Development Jill Swenson This one-day workshop is intended for those who want to write their own first person account of some of life’s experiences. Whether capturing your memories for future generations of your family, writing short essays for magazines or blog posts, pursuing publication of a book length manuscript or simply interested in going beyond your journal, the workshop offers inspiration, techniques, and best practices in the genre of memoir. The first morning session will focus on the conventions of the memoir genre, the differences and similarities to fiction writing, and a discussion of narrative arc. The second session will involve writing exercises involving setting the parameters of time, identifying primary characters, and the…