David Livingstone Smith presents on political rhetoric at prestigious Security and Human Behavior meeting

David Livingstone Smith, Ph.D., professor of philosophy, was an invited speaker at the annual meeting on Security and Human Behavior, which was held May 31-June 1, 2016, at Harvard University.

Smith’s presentation, “Pastry, terror, and magic” was on the topic of political persuasion. He discussed the rhetorical means by which politicians manipulate the populace, with special reference to the rhetorical style of Adolf Hitler and Donald Trump.

The prestigious Security and Human Behavior meetings are restricted to invitees only. Smith has been honored with an invitation every year since the inaugural meeting in 2007.

The event brings together computer scientists, security engineers, psychologists, economists, sociologists, law professors, philosophers and other scholars interested in exploring issues of security and human behavior. The aim is to use an informal and interdisciplinary setting in order to discuss issues where security, psychological and behavioral sciences intersect.