Philosophy of the Mind

Question 1

Dualism

Answer 1

-Mind and the Body afe independent from each other.

Question 2

Descarte’s Methods

Answer 2

-Rational Doubt which means only basing his philosophy on solid foundation he can’t doubt which is his thinking cuz for descartess even doubting is a form of thinking.
-He doubted everything so concluded humans can’t be trusted so he thought there’s an evil demon that’s trying to decieve people.

Question 3

Against Dualism

Answer 3

-Gilbert Ryle argued against dualism with “The Ghost in the Machine” argument. So according to descartes animals are mindless machines cuz we can’t reach their mind. But ryle said we also can’t read people’s mind, no ond can know what’s going on in someones head other then themselves, so we can’t establish that mind exists.
-He said mind is just behavioral dispositions and thinking mind is something ither than behavioral dispositions is making a category mistake.

Question 4

Different kinds of Dualisms

Answer 4

-Substance Dualism- there’s only one substance
–>Kinds of this
-Idealism-there’s only the mind.
-Materialism-there’s only the brain.
-Berkely’s Monism

Question 5

Berkeley’s Monism
(also his answer to the interraction problem.)

Answer 5

-The existence of materials depends on existence of the mind, perception.
–>There are 2 properties.
-Primary Properties-it doesn’t depend on the observer (like temprature.)
-Secondary Qualities-it depends on the observer. (like size.)

Question 6

Interraction Problem/Patrick Swayze Problem

Answer 6

How does the mind and the body relate to each other.

Question 7

Descarte’s Answer to Interraction Problem

Answer 7

-First he said mind and body communicate through the pineal gland but that wasn’t a satisfactory explanation so he came up with 2 theories:
1-Occasionalsim-god is the reason for everythin.
2-Parallelism-there are 2 events, mental and physical and they work in synch with each other

Question 8

Psychological/Methodological Behaviorism

Answer 8

Normally behaviorism is based on introspection, but for psychology to become science, behaviorism should based on objective and observable behaviors.

Question 9

Philosophical/Linguistic/Analytical Behaviorism

Answer 9

Sentences that’s about mental states can be translated into sentences that’s about behaviors and same for the contary.

Question 10

Problems for Philosophical Behaviorism

Answer 10

-When translating some things (pain,hurt…) will be left out and the meaning won’t be equavalent.
-What is the thinker doing?
-Behaviorism took science seriously but didn’t took mind seriously.

Question 11

Mind Body Superveniance

Answer 11

if 2 things are physically alike, then it should be psychologically alike too.

Question 12

Identity

Answer 12

-Qualitative Identity-2 things that are alike (like identical twins.)
-Quantative Identity-2 things that are identical (like my neighbour won the lottery, the person who won the lottery and my neighbor is identical.)

Question 13

Leibniz’s Law

Answer 13

If every property of x is a property of y and every property of y is property of x, then x and y are identical.

Question 14

Kirpe on Identity

Answer 14

-Contingent Truth-when u deny it, it doesn’t result in a contradiction.
-Neccesary Truth-it can’t be denied without resulting a contradiction. (like h2o is water u can’t deny that.)

Question 15

Identity Theory

Answer 15

-There’s a direct correlation between mental states and brain states. (like experience of pain and activity on neurocortex)
-But Identity theory doesn’t accept multiple realizability, for example according to this fish doesn’t have a neurocoretex so they don’t feel pain.
–>because it doesn’t accept multiple realizabillity experience of pain can’t exist as something else it’s only the neurocortex.

Question 16

Argumenst against Identity Theory

Answer 16

-If we want to argue against the identity theory we should show leibniz’s law is violated.

Question 17

Ockham’s Razor

Answer 17

We should follow the principle of parsimony which means using the least resources possible.

Question 18

Functionalism

Answer 18

-Mental states are constutied by their relations to input, output and other mental states.
-If functionalism is correct, then machines can have minds too.
–>Mental Holism-

Question 19

Cognitivism

Answer 19

-If we combine functionalism and computationalism we end up with cognitivism.
-Cognitivism says computers should be able to think.

Question 20

Problems with Cognitivism

Answer 20

->Shakey The Robot-if smth changes in the room, shakey needs a frame, a reference to detect the changes.
->Filling Cabinet Method-putting all the info before letting it interract with the world, which is biologically unrealistic.
->Chinese Room-there’s a black box and there’s someone outside of the box and the person inside should prove they know chinese by passing the chinese turing test but the person in the inside doesn’t know any chinese she just has some books about the chinese grammatic. The person inside passes the test cuz they followed a set of rules–>but the problem is underestimating the brain into just info processing is bad.
->Serial Processing-processing info one by one–>it’s bioligocally unrealistic, and when damage happens the whole system crashes which is not like the brain and there are many things at the same time is happening in the brain.
->Brain Centric-all of these happening in the brain, what about the body?

Question 21

Connectionism

Answer 21

–>More biologically realistic alternative to functionalism
->our brains are network of neurons, and if we want to have a biologically realistic model, then our approach should as close as possible to actual brain structure.

–>according to connectionism,propositional attitudes are eliminated cuz they’re discrete entities.

Question 22

Connectionism Advantages

Answer 22

->It’s more economical way-we only need one set of neurons to represent many things, if i need new representations, all I need to do is to change the configuration.
->Tolerance to Damage-there’s paralle processing which means when a mistake happens, it doesn’t affect the whole system.
->Pattern Completion-even when the input isn’t complete, the ouutput will be still complete, it’ll still be able to find a pattern.
->Free Generalization-if i have input A2 that’s similar to input A1 and input A1 is recognized by the system, then It’ll still be able to how to respond to input A2.

Question 23

Problems for Connectionism

Answer 23

It’s based on set of rules which means if I form 2 sentences with 2 different meaning but with same words, it will be confused.

Question 24

Backpropagation

Answer 24

an algorithm thata minimizes the difference between my result and the result I wanted.

Question 25

Gradient Descent Learning

Answer 25

like climbing into a hill while blindfolded, one by one.

Question 26

Frankenstein Theory

Answer 26

It doesn’t matter which body I connect the mind to, we only need to consider the brain to understand the individual.

Question 27

Theories against Brain-Centric View

Answer 27

Extended Mind Hypothesis-brain and environment belongs to the cognitive mind.
->Embodied Cognition-cognitive capacities are influenced by the type of body we have.
->Embedded Cognition-our cognitive capacities are influenced by the our environment.
->Embodied Experience-our phenomenal experiences are influenced by the type of body we have.
->Embedded Experience-our phenomenal experiences are influenced by our environment.

Question 28

The Explanatory Gap

Answer 28

There’s something missing in a purely physical way about how the brain works.

Question 29

2 Interpretations about the Explanatory Gap

Answer 29

1-Explanatory Gap is an Epistomological problem
-We should be able to explain it but we can’t, we lack to tools to be able to account conscious experiences to scientific explanations.
2-The Explanatory Gap is an Metaphysical Problem
-the problem arises from how we think about the world, we think the world as material and the world is not material.

Question 30

Arguments against Materialism

Answer 30

1-What it likeness
-consciousness has subjective experiences but materialistic theories of consiousness leave out the scientific explaining of consciousness cuz no one can know how it’s like to be someone.
–>Nagel says this is not a problem with materialism, this is a problem with our knowledge, we just don’t have the neccesary concepts yet but we might develop them.
2-Mary the Scientist
-Mary has lived in a black and white box but she knows everything about color, she gets out of the box and sees a banana, does she learn smth new?–>intuition says she does but the problme with this experiment is it’s based on intuition which can be wrong and it’s too demanding, jackson wants to formation of qualia on someone who’s learning the theory and also explain qualia.
3-Phenomenal Zombies
-Imagine a world thats the perfect copy of our world but without phenomenal consciousness.–> there’s nothing that’s like to be in that world cuz there’s no phenomena; consciousness.–> but this means phenomenal states aren’t physical traits so materialism can’t explain this.
->If materialism was correct, then any being that’s physically identical would be also phenomenally identical.

Question 31

Real Zombie like cases

Answer 31

1-Hommicidal Somnabulism-some guy kills his in-laws while sleeping and wakes up with no clue.
2-Blindsight-some dude loses vision on his right side but 15 years later turns out there’s reponse to visual stimuli but he can’t see.
–>These 2 cases tells us phenemonel consciousness has smth do with the brain.

Question 32

Natural Method

Answer 32

For interraction problem, we should combine psychology,neuroscience and phenomonology.
->depression

Question 33

The Hard Problem of Consciousness

Answer 33

-The problems that resist to science.
–>How can materialism can explain consciousness?

Question 34

Pessimism about The Hard Problem

Answer 34

-McGinn-we’re just not smart enough.
-Nagel-we don’t have the right concepts.

Question 35

Optimism about The Hard Problem

Answer 35

-If u tackle the easy problem first (neural things), the u can maybe understand the hard problem.
-consciousness doesn’t exist, it’s just an illusion, we should as abt why is this illusion being generated.

Question 36

Theories to understand Illusion of Consciousness

Answer 36

1-Weak Illusionism-Consciousness is not how it usually describes or seems like.
->So we can’t trust our experiences in consciousness cuz it might be mistaken, so we can never conclude how consciousness actually is.
2-Strong Illusionism-consciousness doesn’t exist, it’s an illusion and ur not actually conscious.

Question 37

Folk View of Attention

Answer 37

How we experience attention

Question 38

2 Methaphors for Folk Conception of Attention

Answer 38

1-The Spotlight Methaphor
-In our minds bright light is placed on objects that’s on display.
-Attention structures our experience, objects that are on displat are brought into the foregrounf of experience.
2-The Experimental Highlight Methaphor
-Qualitative Changes on objects.

Question 39

Importance of these Methaphors

Answer 39

-They related to each other, bright light can mean change in physical features.
–>so this means attention is related to change in content.

Question 40

2 Challenges for Folk Conception of Attention

Answer 40

1-Pre-Conscious Non-Conscious Mind
->Our attention and consciousness often dissociate.
-Inattentional Blindness-individual fails to percieve an unexpected stimuli in sight and the factors that affect this are expectations and attentional goals.
-Voluntary Saccadic Movements-movements happening before us being conscious abt them.
-Cortical Blindness and Smooth Pursuit-movements happening without us being aware of them.
-Attentional Priming-being primed with a stimuli which affects our perception and experience.
–>If attention is beyond our consciousness then our experience don’t tell us everything we should know abt consciousness.
2-The Two Mechanisms
->there are ventral and dorsal mechanisms which controls voluntary and involuntary movements and they interract wiht each other allows flexibe control of our attention.
–>If there are 2 systems that controls attention, then there can’t be a unified view of attention.

Question 41

2 Strategies for 2 Challanges of Folk View of Attention

Answer 41

1-Reductionism
-Focusing on only 1 view of attention.a
->Attention as a Competetive Bias
-we are exposed to many info but the one that really matters is the one that’s about our current behavior.
-So attention is the mechanism that chooses between these infos..
->Attention as a Broadcasting Info for Working Memory
-attention is responsible for broadcasting info to the working memory.
–>These 2 systems leave out evidence and how attention feels.
2-Non-Reductionism
-Trying to give a unified view of attention.
->The Structuring View of Attention
->The Rational Access of Attention
-attention is responsible for our rational behaviors and our interraction with the world.

Question 42

The Binding Problem

Answer 42

-There is no one place in the brain where everything comes together, but still we perceive everything as a unit.
-Multi-Sensory Binding-integration of stimuli picked up through different senses.

Question 43

Binding Problem and Attention

Answer 43

->The Binding Theory of Attention-Attention is the mechanism that combines different features together.
-Binding is important for attention but it’s not neccesary, there can be binding without attention. (like u can catch a ball u didn’t see it coming.)

Question 44

Binding and The Self

Answer 44

-Binding is linked to self cuz we percieve ourselves as continuous and as a whole.

Question 45

Solutions to the Binding Problem

Answer 45

1-Dualism
-the mind unifies consciousness by selecting neural activity, it does it based on desires.
2-Materialism
a)Binding by Syncrony-binding occurs when neurons fire synchronously.
b)Integrated Info Theory-binding occurs when the info is integrated.
c)Enactivism
-Skills Theory of Perception-we experience ourselves as a unit cuz they’re the part of the same sensorimotor project.

Question 46

Unity as an Illusion

Answer 46

1-Confabulation-unity is smth we attribute to our actions,perceptions and experiences.
2- Methaphor of the Fridge-we don’t know if unity exists but it’s there whenever we look.
->Synasethesia- 2 is yellow.
-Misbinding-associating a stimuli with a movement thats not actually there.

Question 47

Phenenemonolgy of the Self: Thought Experiences (Brain-Swapping, Teletransporter, Ship of Theseus)

Answer 47

1-Brain Swapping Experience
->if I switch ur and johns brains, which one are u?

2-The Teletransporter
->if I transport u to a different place, is that still u?
->if I copy u and tranport that copy to a diffferent place, which one are u?

3-Ship of Theseus
->if I change the ship one by one, is that still the same ship?

Question 48

Does the Self exist? 2 ways to answer that question:

Answer 48

1-The Ego Theory
->We feel like self exists cuz it actually exist.
->The self might change throught the life but it’s still an enduring entity, it’s still the author of our actions, behaviors etc.

There are 2 versions of the ego theory

a)Dualism and the Ego Theory
-> if self is immaterial, then how could it be the author of our actions?

b)Materialism and the Ego Theory
->self is material, the part of the brain.
–>But richard double said there’s no evidence that there’s a “self” in the brain.\

2-The Bundle Theoy
->Self is an illusion, all there’s is collecion of experiences.

a)Buddhism
->Defended the idea “annata” which means no self.
->if we gave up the idea of self, then we would be gave out desires etc. so we would suffer less.

b)David Hume
->self is just collection of experiences, our memory creates the idea of self but there’s no self
–>like when we do introspection, we don’t find a self.

c)Category Mistake
->asking abt the self is a category mistake cuz there’s no self.

Question 49

Theories of the Self

Answer 49

1-The Neuroscientific Model of The Self
2 versions on that;
a)Gazzaniga’s View
->self is in the brain
b)Mackays View
->There are 2 systems that creates the self
1-Executive Function
->brain processes that controls our behaviors according to our current desires.
2-Self-Controlling Function
->brain processes that determines those desires.

2-Enactivism
->Self arises from our interractions with the world hence experiences.
-Interractions with the world;
a)Shaun Gallaghar
->self arises from our embodied experiences witht the world.
b)Self is a Social Construct
->Self arises from our social interractions
->Others think of me, therefore I am.

3-Narrative View of the Self
->Self arises from the act of storytelling, so the storys we tell to ourselves (our own delusions)
–>But self is fiction cuz it’s our version, brain wants to make everything good and consistent.

4-Metzinger’s Phenomenal View of the Self
->We shouldn’t ask where is self, instead we should ask why the feeling of self arises, why such phenenemonology exists.

Question 50

The Debate on Free Will

Answer 50

1-Determinism
->Our world is already determined, there’s only 1 possible world and it’s all already decided by the natural law.

2-Determinism and Dualism
->If self is immaterial, then it can’t subject to natural laws.
–>So the events that caused by a sould are not determined.

3-Hard Determinism
–>Incompatibilism-either free will exist or determinism is true.
->determinism is true, there is no free will.

4-Libertarionism
->determinism is false, there is free will.

5-Compatibilism
->determinism is compatible with the existence of free will.

Question 50

Free Will and the 2 Conditions to have Free Will

Answer 50

1-We should have alternative options we can choose from, otherwise it’s not free will because we had to choose it, we didn’t had a choice.

2-The cause actions should not be something else, it should be only me.

Question 51

Libet’s Experiment

Answer 51

->An experiment to understand role of consciousness in our behavior.
->Participants were asked to do an action and note the moment they were aware of their decision to move.

Result
->In the brain, the unconscious decision to perform an action is visible before the conscious decision.–>it seems that we dont have free will.

Some Issues
->the timing of the conscious decision to move is not reliable.
->The action is banal cuz ofc we’re gonna raise our arms, we dont need to make a conscious decision abt that.

Libet’s Response
->We don’t have free will, we have free won’t.
->We are free to not to perform an action, or stop the action we’re performing.

Eperiment Shows
->Free will doesn’t exist, consciousness plays a role in our behavior.
->Free will doesn’t make any sense.

Question 52

Criticism on Positions

Answer 52

1-Arguments against Compatibilism
->2 principles of free will will entail a rejection of determinism.

2- Arguments against Libertarianism
->rejecting materialism is unscientific.

3- Arguments against Hard Determinism
->Even quatum physicis says not everything is determined, some things are random. If that’s true free will might exist.
–>This argument is not very strong cuz if some things are random, then that’s not free will. That means our actions are determined by random physical events.

Question 53

The Illusion of No Will

Answer 53

-It feels like we’re not acting out of our free will but we are.
–>Michael Faraday and Spirutalism
-It feels like spirits are moving the board but it’s actually u.
–>Jay Olson and the Mind Reading Machine
->it feels like the choice is made by the machines and not us.
–>Schzophrenia
->it feels like someone is controlling us.

Question 54

The Illusion of Free Will

Answer 54

-It feels like we’re acting out of our free will but we’re actually not.
–>Magicians
-the magicians form the cards in such a way it feels like we purposely choose that card, but in reality we choose it cuz their arrangement of cards made us choose that spesific card.
–>Daniel Wegner and the Ouija Board
-he made people belive that they had choosen certain things by priming them.

Question 55

Handling The Risk

Answer 55

1-The Danger of Rejecting Free Will
->rejecting free will gives us the idea that we’re not responsible from our actions.

–>An experiment made people read a text that encourages determinism and free will and then made people do a task they could cheat.
–>Beliefs on determinism and free will determines peoples moral behavior.

Handling the Risk
-Option 1
->Don’t tell people they’re free otherwise they’ll act immorally.

-Option 2
->Tell people they’re free, it might encourage compassion.

-Option 3
->Free Will Fictionalism-live as you are free.

Question 56

Mindless Design and Explaining the Good Fit

Answer 56

-Each organism seems to adapt to its environment.
There are 3 Options
1The good fit is just an accident.
2-Directed Design-the good fit is not an accidant and it is an evidence of an intelligent being.
3-Mindless Desing-the good fit is not an accident but there’s other explanations for it.

Question 57

The Evolutionary Algorithm

Answer 57

->Natural selection is an algortihm, when followed it guaratees positive results.
->When Conditions are met, evolution leads to better adapted population.

–>Panadationism-not every feature of adaptation is benedicial.

Question 58

Animal Consciousness
(The Problem of Other Minds)

Answer 58

-The Problem of other Minds
->the skeptical worry of how is it possible to know others has thoughts, feelings, experiences like us.

–>Descartes said animals are automata (midless machines)
–>Panpsychism-everything has consciousness.

Question 59

Learning About Animal Conciousness
(Physical and Behavioral Indicators, Self-Recognition, Mind Reading, Imitation)

Answer 59

1-Physical and Behavioral Indicators
->

Question 60

The Function of Consciousness
(Consciousness Innestionallism and Ephiphenemonalism, Consciousness has no Independent Function, Consciousness has no Adaptive Function,Consciousness is an Illusion)