How the Brain Makes Meaning

Catalog description

Conceptual knowledge underpins all aspects of everyday experience, from language, to thinking, to recognizing familiar objects, people and places. This seminar will survey major theories and findings about how the brain represents 'meaning.' The course will emphasize research using neuropsychological methods in brain-damaged patients and functional neuroimaging in healthy participants. Students will read primary empirical and theoretical review articles to develop an understanding of both classic findings and recent discoveries about how the human brain represents meaning. Prerequisites: (85-219 or 85-211) and (36-201 or 36-200 )