Brain-Wise: Studies in Neurophilosophy

In association with Amazon.com

All ProductsApparelAutomotiveBabyBeautyBooksClassical MusicDVDDigital MusicElectronicsGourmet FoodHealth & Personal CareJewelryKitchen & HousewaresMagazinesMiscellaneousMusicMusic TracksMusical InstrumentsOffice ProductsOutdoor LivingPC HardwarePet SuppliesPhotoRestaurantsSoftwareSporting GoodsTools & HardwareToysVHSVideo (DVD & VHS)Video GamesWirelessWireless Accessories

Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 153.01
EAN: 9780262532006
ISBN: 026253200X
Label: The MIT Press
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 438
Publication Date: December 02, 2002
Publisher: The MIT Press
Studio: The MIT Press

---

Related Items:

• Neurophilosophy: Toward a Unified Science of the Mind-Brain
• Neurophilosophy at Work
• Matter and Consciousness: A Contemporary Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind
• The Engine of Reason, The Seat of the Soul: A Philosophical Journey into the Brain
• A Neurocomputational Perspective: The Nature of Mind and the Structure of Science
• see more

Alternate Versions: Click to Display

Browse for similar items by category: Click to Display

---

Editorial Review:

Product Description:
Progress in the neurosciences is profoundly changing our conception of ourselves. Contrary to time-honored intuition, the mind turns out to be a complex of brain functions. And contrary to the wishful thinking of some philosophers, there is no stemming the revolutionary impact that brain research will have on our understanding of how the mind works. Brain-Wise is the sequel to Patricia Smith Churchland’s Neurophilosophy, the book that launched a subfield. In a clear, conversational manner, this book examines old questions about the nature of the mind within the new framework of the brain sciences. What, it asks, is the neurobiological basis of consciousness, the self, and free choice? How does the brain learn about the external world and about its own introspective world? What can neurophilosophy tell us about the basis and significance of religious and moral experiences? Drawing on results from research at the neuronal, neurochemical, system, and whole-brain levels, the book gives an up-to-date perspective on the state of neurophilosophy--what we know, what we do not know, and where things may go from here.




Rating: - Neuroscience for philosophers - even for amateurs
While tough sledding in sections for those without a grounding in biology, this volume weds an overview of philosophy from Aristotle to the moderns, to the latest studies in how the brain and its constituent parts actually "work", and discusses in clear language the tentative conclusions that can be currently drawn. Since it discusses metaphysical subjects, those conclusions will meet a priori disagreement, but all readers will have a solid foundation to judge the issues for themselves.

---

Rating: - Philosophy meets neuroscience accessibly and controversially
This masterly book summarizes a prodigious amount of research about the workings of the brain. Author Patricia Smith Churchland introduces the basics of neuroscience to the realm of philosophy. She says that present scientific knowledge about the brain makes it implausible that there is any such thing as an immaterial mind or soul. A committed materialist (although she does not make the case for materialism), she puts a mass of incomplete scientific evidence before you and says that more scientific ... Read More

---

Rating: - Not traditional philosophy (thank goodness!)
Philosophical purists will criticize Churchland for refusing to engage the philosophical "tradition" on its own terms, i.e., she refuses to stick her head in the sand and theorize as if neuroscience and psychology didn't exist. Rather, what Churchland has done is invert this traditional philosphical stance : survey the scientific results on topics philosophers have wanted to claim as their own: consciousness, free will, the self, human knowledge, religion, and the like (each gets a chapter in her book). ... Read More

---

Rating: - Hardly philosophy
This book is only one example of the current practice by philosophers of essentially abandoning their craft and worshiping at the altar of science. Philosophy had always tried to go beyond observation of perceived physical reality alone, and deal with questions such as--in the branch of philosophy known as epistemology--how is knowledge of that reality, or of matters like principles of logic and mathematics, acquired.

What is pitiful is that the author of the book tries to subsume even these questions ... Read More

---

Rating: - Disappointing
Brain-wise is, to say the least, a less than impressive effort from a philosopher as prominent in philosophy of mind as Churchland is. A short list of complaints includes:

-Churchland collapses the distinction between 'consciousness' in the phenomenal sense ('subjective character of experience') & 'consciousness' in the psychological sense (awareness or self-consciousness)(see Chalmers, 'The Conscious Mind')

-most of her conclusions are simply asserted rather than argued, & when she does make ... Read More

---