Despite their apparently divergent accounts of higher cognition, cognitive theories based on neural computation and those employing symbolic computation can in fact strengthen one another. To substan
The sharing of a sexual partner between relatives has always been taboo. In this stunning work, anthropologist Francoise Heritier charts the incest prohibition throughout history, from the strict dec
Culture in Practice collects the academic and political writings from the 1960sthrough the 1990s of anthropologist Marshall Sahlins. More than a compilation, Culture in Practiceunfolds as an intellect
Analogy has been the focus of extensive research in cognitive science over the past two decades. Through analogy, novel situations and problems can be understood in terms of familiar ones. Indeed, a c
The mainstays of brain imaging techniques have been positron emission tomography (PET), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), magnetoencephalography (MEG), and event-related potentials (ERPs).
The controversial subject of this book is the permissible use of animals by humans. Lewis Petrinovich argues that humans have a set of cognitive abilities, developing from a suite of emotional attachm
"The fish's streamlined shape reveals functional knowledge ofthe physical properties of water.... The deadly effectiveness of the cobra's venom shows useful knowledge of the physiology of its
Neurophysiological, neuroanatomical, and brain imaging studies have helped to shed light on how the brain transforms raw sensory information into a form that is useful for goal-directed behavior. A fu
Believing that the enterprise of constructing "artificial intelligence" transcends the bounds of any one discipline, the editors of Mechanical Bodies, Computational Minds have brought togeth
The fundamental question of the ethics of belief is "What ought one to believe?" According to the traditional view of evidentialism, the strength of one's beliefs should be proportionate to
The remarkable achievements that modern science has made in physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, and engineering contrast sharply with our limited knowledge of the huma
What does feeling a sharp pain in one's hand have in common with seeing a red apple on the table? Some say not much, apart from the fact that they are both conscious experiences. To see an object is t
This graduate-level text teaches students how to use a small number of powerful mathematical tools for analyzing and designing a wide variety of artificial neural network (ANN) systems, including thei
Recent decades have produced a blossoming of research in artificial systems that exhibit important properties of mind. But what exactly is this dramatic new work and how does it change the way we thin
"Those who ask whether mental processes can extend beyond the brain and into the world may seem to be asking `where is my mind?' Mark Rowlands instead replaces questions about the location of cognitio
The causal theory of action (CTA) is widely recognized in the literature of the philosophy of action as the "standard story" of human action and agency—the nearest approximation in th
"Arguments against radical enhancement have too often in the past been characterized by irrationalism and mysticism. Nicholas Agar presents the first cogent case for the rationality of opposing radica
In Our Own Minds, Radu Bogdan takes a developmental perspective on consciousness---its functional design in particular---and proposes that children's functional capacity for consciousness is assembled
Many students find it difficult to learn the kinds of knowledge and thinking required by college or high school courses in mathematics, science, or other complex domains. Thus they often emerge with
Ideas about heredity and evolution are undergoing a revolutionary change. New findings in molecular biology challenge the gene-centered version of Darwinian theory according to which adaptation occur
