Perception: How Our Bodies Shape our Minds, a talk by UVA Professor Dennis Proffitt

This talk, a Rotary Club of Orange free event open to the public, features UVA Professor of Psychology Dennis Proffitt.  

At 8am on September 6th, 2022, log on with this Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2073950485?pwd=OFFlaGtUSXJsU2RNbUZjSkpsZklTQT09

Précis

Our eyes are not only windows on our world, but they are also windows on our evolution and ways of life. When, for example, the Revolutionary Commander at the Battle of Bunker Hill bellowed, “Don’t fire till you see the whites of their eyes,” he was referring to the white outer layer of our eyes, called the sclera. Humans are the only great ape to have white sclera, which facilitates our social communication by making it easier to tell where other people are looking. Comparing human eyes to those of other animals tells us a great deal about human nature, including such topics as the consequences of our having hands, why our bodies are not covered in fur like most other mammals, and the evolution of human skin color. This talk was first delivered as part of the University of Virginia undergraduate speaker series “Unforgettable Lectures.”

About the Speaker

Dennis Proffitt is the Commonwealth Professor of Psychology, Emeritus, at the University of Virginia. He has authored about two hundred research publications, mostly in the area of human visual perception, and a 2020 book with Drake Baer, Perception: How our Bodies Shape our Minds. During his 40-year tenure at the University, Professor Proffitt Chaired the Department of Psychology, founded and directed the Cognitive Science Degree Program, and received the University’s highest recognition for teaching, the Cavalier Distinguished Teaching Professorship. In 2021, he received the Thomas Jefferson Award for Excellence in Scholarship, the highest honor given by the University to a faculty member.

Website: https://uva.theopenscholar.com/dennis-proffitt/