Views Into the Chinese Room


Book Description

Featuring 19 specially written essays by leading scientists and philosophers, this volume is a state-of-the-art work on the foundations of cognitive science.




The Chinese Room


Book Description

Censorship halted the original distribution of this suspenseful tale of a forbidden romance.




The Postmodern Brain


Book Description

This interdisciplinary work discloses an unexpected coherence between recent concepts in brain science and postmodern thought. A nonlinear dynamical model of brain states is viewed as an autopoietic, autorhoetic, self-organizing, self-tuning eruption under multiple constraints and guided by an overarching optimization principle which insures conservation of invariances and enhancement of symmetries. The nonlinear dynamical brain as developed shows quantum nonlocality, undergoes chaotic regimes, and does not compute. Heidegger and Derrida are appropriated as dynamical theorists who are concerned respectively with the movement of time and being ("Ereignis") and text ("Differance"). The chasm between postmodern thought and the thoroughly metaphysical theory that the brain computes is breached, once the nonlinear dynamical framework is adopted. The book is written in a postmodern style, making playful, opportunistic use of marginalia and dreams, and presenting a nonserial surface of broken complexity. (Series A)




Philosophy of Mind


Book Description

Developments in the philosophy of mind over the last 20 years have dramatically changed the nature of the subject. In this major new introduction, Tim Bayne presents an outstanding overview of many of the key topics, problems, and debates, taking account not only of changes in philosophy of mind itself but also of important developments in the scientific study of the mind. The following topics are discussed in depth: What distinguishes a physicalist conception of the mind? Behaviourism, the identity theory, functionalism, and eliminativism as accounts of the mental The nature of perception, including the issue of perceptual transparency, the admissible contents of perception, and the question of unconscious perception The nature of thought, including the language of thought hypothesis, Searle’s Chinese room argument, and the Turing test The basis of intentional content Externalist accounts of content and the ‘extended mind’ thesis Consciousness-based objections to physicalism, and illusionist and panpsychist conceptions of consciousness Theories of consciousness, including methodological issues in the study of consciousness Mental causation, including both philosophical and scientific challenges The problem(s) of other minds, including knowledge of non-human minds Self-knowledge Personal identity and the nature of the self The book features a number of boxes that provide a more in-depth look at particular issues. Also included are chapter summaries, guides to further reading, and a helpful glossary of terms. Written by a leading figure in the field, Philosophy of Mind: An Introduction is an invaluable core text for any student coming to philosophy of mind for the first time.




The Philosophy of Human Learning


Book Description

The Philosophy of Human Learning addresses current concerns with the nature of human learning from a distinctive philosophical perspective. Using insights derived from the work of Wittgenstein, it mounts a vigorous attack on influential contemporary accounts of learning, both in the 'romantic' Rousseauian tradition and in the 'scientific' cognotivist tradition. These two schools, Professor Winch argues, are more closely related than is commonly realised.




Cognitive Science


Book Description

Cognitive Science combines the interdisciplinary streams of cognitive science into a unified narrative in an all-encompassing introduction to the field. This text presents cognitive science as a discipline in its own right, and teaches students to apply the techniques and theories of the cognitive scientist's 'toolkit' - the vast range of methods and tools that cognitive scientists use to study the mind. Thematically organized, rather than by separate disciplines, Cognitive Science underscores the problems and solutions of cognitive science, rather than those of the subjects that contribute to it - psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, etc. The generous use of examples, illustrations, and applications demonstrates how theory is applied to unlock the mysteries of the human mind. Drawing upon cutting-edge research, the text has been updated and enhanced to incorporate new studies and key experiments since the first edition. A new chapter on consciousness has also been added.




Varieties of Psychological Inquiry - Volume 2


Book Description

'Varieties of Psychological Inquiry' consists of twenty-five essays (distributed across two volumes) that venture into various facets of psychology - ranging from: Freud. Jung and Sullivan, to: Piaget, Sheldrake, and beyond. Among the topics explored are: Anxiety, dissociation, abuse, charisma, developmental psychology, the 'God gene', SSRIs, memory, chronobiology, neurobiology, consciousness, and holographic theories of mind. While no particular theory of psychology is espoused during the pages of this two volume work, a variety of theoretical and empirical issues are critically explored and reflected upon in considerable detail. In a sense, the direction in which the essays of this book point is toward epistemological horizons where what is known (possibly) seeks to merge with what is not, yet, known.




Engineering Intelligent Systems


Book Description

Engineering Intelligent Systems Exploring the three key disciplines of intelligent systems As artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technology continue to develop and find new applications, advances in this field have generally been focused on the development of isolated software data analysis systems or of control systems for robots and other devices. By applying model-based systems engineering to AI, however, engineers can design complex systems that rely on AI-based components, resulting in larger, more complex intelligent systems that successfully integrate humans and AI. Engineering Intelligent Systems relies on Dr. Barclay R. Brown’s 25 years of experience in software and systems engineering to propose an integrated perspective to the challenges and opportunities in the use of artificial intelligence to create better technological and business systems. While most recent research on the topic has focused on adapting and improving algorithms and devices, this book puts forth the innovative idea of transforming the systems in our lives, our societies, and our businesses into intelligent systems. At its heart, this book is about how to combine systems engineering and systems thinking with the newest technologies to design increasingly intelligent systems. Engineering Intelligent Systems readers will also find: An introduction to the fields of artificial intelligence with machine learning, model-based systems engineering (MBSE), and systems thinking—the key disciplines for making systems smarter An example of how to build a deep neural network in a spreadsheet, with no code or specialized mathematics required An approach to the visual representation of systems, using techniques from moviemaking, storytelling, visual systems design, and model-based systems engineering An analysis of the potential ability of computers to think, understand and become conscious and its implications for artificial intelligence Tools to allow for easier collaboration and communication among developers and engineers, allowing for better understanding between stakeholders, and creating a faster development cycle A systems thinking approach to people systems—systems that consist only of people and which form the basis for our organizations, communities and society Engineering Intelligent Systems offers an intriguing new approach to making systems more intelligent using artificial intelligence, machine learning, systems thinking, and system modeling and therefore will be of interest to all engineers and business professionals, particularly systems engineers.




Keeping Those Words in Mind


Book Description

How can humans keep thousands of words in mind and have no difficulty understanding trillions of sentences? The answer to this question might lie in parents teaching their children language skills, or in in the human brain, which may be equipped with a language instinct or maybe in impressive memory skills that link words to their perceptual information. Undoubtedly, there is some truth to some of these explanations. But one answer – perhaps the most important answer – has been largely ignored. Keeping Those Words in Mind tries to remedy this oversight. Linguist and cognitive psychologist Max Louwerse, PhD. argues that understanding language is not just possible because of memory, brains, environment and computation, but because of the patterns in the sequence of sounds and words themselves.He demonstrates that what seems to be an arbitrary communication system, with arbitrary characters and sounds that become words, and arbitrary meanings for those words, actually is a well-organized system that has evolved over tens of thousands of years to make communication as efficient as it is. What is needed for humans to acquire language, is for humans to recognize and discover the patterns in our communication system. By examining how our brains process language and find patterns, the intricacies of the language system itself, and even scientific breakthroughs in computer science and artificial intelligence, Keeping Those Words in Mind brings a brand new and interdisciplinary explanation for our ability to extract meaning from language.




Foundations of Computer Science


Book Description

Content Description #Dedicated to Wilfried Brauer.#Includes bibliographical references and index.