Παρουσίαση/Προβολή

(PHS707) -  Orly Shenker - Amalia Tsakiri (assistant)

Περιγραφή Μαθήματος

So much happens in our minds! We perceive our environment, we think about things, we have emotions, we have dreams, hopes, beliefs… But what are all of these? How do they come about, and what makes them the way that they are? The success of brain science and cognitive science suggest that they are strongly connected to brain states and processes, but what exactly is this connection? Are the mental states and processes merely brain states or processes? Or perhaps some sort of computation that runs on the brain as its hardware, as the advancement of computers, and especially artificial intelligence, may suggest? Or does the mind involve something over and above the material brain, something that makes us who we are and could, for example, remain once the body is no longer alive? If so, what might that be? And how should we go about searching for it? Do non-human animals have minds, and if so, to what extent is it similar to the human mind and in what way do they differ? Can inanimate things like computers think? The success of AI systems of Large Language Models raises further questions about the nature of thought and language: How is it that certain noises or marks that people or computers make can be about something else? How does language "hook onto" the world? What is the nature of meaning? How is thought connected to reality? Philosophical tradition and contemporary philosophy and science offer a variety of answers to these questions. The course will introduce students to these ideas, focusing on prominent conceptual tools and theories in contemporary analytic philosophy and in view of the achievements of contemporary science.

Ημερομηνία δημιουργίας

Τετάρτη 12 Φεβρουαρίου 2025