Philosophy of Cognition and the Brain: From Neurons to Embodied Cognition

Course manual 2019/2020

Course content

The course will aim to provide students with a set of conceptual and philosophical tools for thinking about how mind and brain are related. A central question in philosophy of mind has been to explain and understand the relation the mind stands in to the body. Nowadays few philosophers are willing to accept dualism, the view that mind and body are different kinds of things. However this leaves open a range of possibilities which includes a reductionist position claiming that the study of neuronal processes is sufficient for explaining cognitive processes. We will question the latter reductionist position while also showing how the brain sciences can contribute to addressing this old philosophical question.

The behavioural sciences including psychology focus on psychological and cognitive functioning of organisms whereas the biological sciences including the brain sciences investigate the structural and organisational properties of organisms in their
environments. Behavioural and biological sciences investigate different phenomena, using different techniques and methods. How can the perspectives of these different disciplines and research fields be integrated? Answering this question can help us to understand how psychological and cognitive functions are related to biological organisation, and this is one way of addressing the longstanding philosophical puzzle concerning how mind and body are related.

The aim of the course will be to provide students with conceptual tools for thinking critically about research in neuroscience and its philosophical implications. Students will be challenged to draw connections between theoretical questions in the brain sciences and philosophical questions. They will acquire critical reading skills and the ability to present arguments and the main points from a text in a clear and precise fashion. They will learn the general outline of some central theoretical issues in neuroscientific research and conceptual connections between theoretical positions.

Study materials

Literature

• Obligatory texts will be listed in the study guide. These must be retrieved by students themselves from the university library or elsewhere.

Objectives

1. Students will be able to consider the philosophical questions that are related to their research in brain and cognitive sciences
2. Student will be able to describe and discuss philosophical approaches to a variety of questions of theoretical and philosophical relevance in the neurosciences today.
3. Students will learn how neuroscientific and psychological research may be of relevance to philosophical questions.
4. Students will acquire critical reasoning skills and learn how to apply them to thinking about empirical research.
5. Students will be able to assess theoretical arguments for soundness and validity.
6. Students will learn to raise and answer philosophical objections.
7. Students will come to understand how neuroscientific research can contribute to the scientific study of human cognition.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Seminar
• Self-study

Learning activities

Attendance

Requirements of the programme concerning attendance (OER-B):

1. In the case of practicals, the student must attend at least 80%. Should the student attend less than 80%, he/she must redo the practical, or the Examinations Board may have one or more supplementary assignments issued.
2. In the case of study-group sessions with assignments, the student must attend at least 80% of the study-group sessions. Should the student attend less than 80%, he/she must redo the study group, or the Examinations Board may have one or more supplementary assignments issued.
3. The student must attend 80% of the teaching per study unit of the mandatory courses, entry courses and specialisation courses.

Assessment

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Timetable

The schedule for this course is published on DataNose.

Last year's course evaluation

In order to provide students some insight how we use the feedback of student evaluations to enhance the quality of education, we decided to include the table below in all course guides.

Contact information

Coordinator

• dr. Machiel Keestra