Social Mindscapes: An Invitation to Cognitive Sociology

Why do we eat sardines, but never goldfish; ducks, but never parrots? Why does adding cheese make a hamburger a "cheeseburger" whereas adding ketchup does not make it a "ketchupburger"? By the same token, how do we determine which things said at a meeting should be included in the minutes and which ought to be considered "off the record" and officially disregarded?

In this wide—ranging and provocative book, Eviatar Zerubavel argues that cognitive science cannot answer these questions, sinc...