PHIL455 Topics in the Philosophy of Cognitive Science: The Structure of the Mind
Professor Margolis
Do people with radically different background theories perceive the world in different ways? Is language essential to some forms of cognition? Are moral judgments more dependent on reason or emotion? How do human and animal minds differ? This section of PHIL455 will look at questions about the overall structure of the mind where the best research is equally grounded in developments in philosophy and the cognitive sciences.
Readings
One or two articles per week. Some of these will be by philosophers, some by cognitive scientists. The exact readings will depend on the topics the class settles on—there will be some choices.
Course Format
This course will be organized as a seminar and will emphasize class discussion. Attendance and participation are required.
Grades
There is some flexibility here—I will ask for student input regarding the nature of the graded assignments—but the default will be: (1) 15 % homework (brief written reactions to the readings), (2) 15% participation, (3) 20% short paper, (4) 50% research paper.
Papers
The short paper will take the form of a brief critical commentary on one of the main texts from the first few weeks of class. For the research paper (up to 3000 words), you will be given the opportunity to devise your own research topic, focusing on a philosophical debate that is related to one of the major themes in the course.
Prerequisites
PHIL 240 or COGS 200 if accompanied by 3 credits in PHIL at the 200-level or above, plus at least 3rd year undergraduate status. In addition, it is recommended that you have also taken either PHIL451 (philosophy of mind) or PHIL441 (philosophy of perception).
Online teaching because of Covid-19:
The course will be taught in real time using Zoom or some other video conference tool. Everyone is expected to turn on their computer's video camera and microphone and to participate in the class discussion as fully engaged seminar participants. On a typical day, the class time will be split between small-group discussion and full-class discussion. Small groups (4-5 students per group) will focus on exercises associated with specific arguments or theories in the day's reading. Full-class discussions will cover the larger themes in the texts. I will also regularly set aside some class time for one-on-one meetings with each student to discuss your written work and your progress on the research paper.
Do people with radically different background theories perceive the world in different ways? Is language essential to some forms of cognition? Are moral judgments more dependent on reason or emotion? How do human and animal minds differ? This section of PHIL455 will look at questions about the overall structure of the mind where the best research is equally grounded in developments in philosophy and the cognitive sciences.
Readings
One or two articles per week. Some of these will be by philosophers, some by cognitive scientists. The exact readings will depend on the topics the class settles on—there will be some choices.
Course Format
This course will be organized as a seminar and will emphasize class discussion. Attendance and participation are required.
Grades
There is some flexibility here—I will ask for student input regarding the nature of the graded assignments—but the default will be: (1) 15 % homework (brief written reactions to the readings), (2) 15% participation, (3) 20% short paper, (4) 50% research paper.
Papers
The short paper will take the form of a brief critical commentary on one of the main texts from the first few weeks of class. For the research paper (up to 3000 words), you will be given the opportunity to devise your own research topic, focusing on a philosophical debate that is related to one of the major themes in the course.
Prerequisites
PHIL 240 or COGS 200 if accompanied by 3 credits in PHIL at the 200-level or above, plus at least 3rd year undergraduate status. In addition, it is recommended that you have also taken either PHIL451 (philosophy of mind) or PHIL441 (philosophy of perception).
Online teaching because of Covid-19:
The course will be taught in real time using Zoom or some other video conference tool. Everyone is expected to turn on their computer's video camera and microphone and to participate in the class discussion as fully engaged seminar participants. On a typical day, the class time will be split between small-group discussion and full-class discussion. Small groups (4-5 students per group) will focus on exercises associated with specific arguments or theories in the day's reading. Full-class discussions will cover the larger themes in the texts. I will also regularly set aside some class time for one-on-one meetings with each student to discuss your written work and your progress on the research paper.