Daniel C. Dennett - A Human Mind as an Upside-down Brain
Fyrirlesturinn verður haldinn mánudaginn 21. júní kl. 16 í húsnæði Háskólans í Reykjavík í Nauthólsvík í Bellatrix (stofu M1.01).
Bandaríski heimspekingurinn Daniel C. Dennett er með þekktari fyrirlesurum samtímans og mikilvirkur fræðimaður á sviði heimspeki hugans, vísindaheimspeki og hugrænna vísinda (e. philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, cognitive science). Dennett hefur einnig fjallað mikið um þróunarkenningu og trúmál.
Abstract:
Brains, like termite colonies, are composed of millions (or billions) of small agents, whose competences are excellently coordinated without any explicit leader or boss. Termite colonies are capable of "brilliant" feats, in spite of the clueslessness of their component agents, but nothing remotely as clever or insightful as the behavior of a normal human child. Where does the huge leap in cognitive power come from? How can a comprehending mind be composed of noncomprehending elements? Sheer numbers of agents--billions in contrast to millions--is surely important, but what organizing principles or processes can generate conscious comprehension out of even billions of unconscious agents? Descartes in the 17th century proposed that only an immaterial mind--a human soul, in effect--could be responsible. He was utterly wrong, of course, but in some regards he was on the right track. Our brains are furnished with "virtual machines" that themselves had to evolve. They enhance the functional architecture of the brains that implement them in ways that are not available to any other species.
Nánari upplýsingar um Dennet:
Heimasíða Dennetts: http://ase.tufts.edu/cogstud/incbios/dennettd/dennettd.htm
Fyrirlestrar Dennetts á TED.com: http://www.ted.com/search?q=dennett&x=0&y=0
Wikipedia um Dennett: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Dennett
