Do you ever wonder what your dog is thinking? You aren’t alone. Researchers across the country are looking for answers in a relatively new academic field, known as canine cognition, that grapples with questions about dog intelligence, psychology, emotions, and more. What they’re finding behind those puppy-dogeyes isn’t necessarily extraordinary intelligence. It’s something deeper that sets them apart.

Bring your dog and join Future Tense for a happy hour conversation on Wednesday, June 14, exploring what we know about how dogs think, how that informs their behavior, and their roles in our lives. The event will take place at Wunder Garten, a dog-friendly beer garden located in the NOMA neighborhood of Washington.

After the conversation, guests will have the opportunity to continue the conversation with refreshments and participate in a citizen science-driven project called Darwin’s Dogs. Darwin’s Dogs invites dog owners to submit saliva samples from their dogs and fill out brief surveys, which will contribute to research exploring the genetic basis of dog behavior, as well as diseases such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and cancer.

The reception and registration will open at 6:30 p.m., followed by the conversation at 7 p.m. For more information and to RSVP, visit the New America website.