Philosophical Foundations in Cognitive Science

Catalog description

This course will introduce students to the philosophical foundations of cognitive science. Topics will include the nature and distribution of consciousness, including cognitive, neurobiological, and informational theories; theories of cognition, including computational-representational and non-representational “EEE” (embodied/emergent/enactive) theories; theories of emotion, affect, valence, and motivation; theories of action and agency, and evolutionary theory. All of these discussions will be cutting-edge research in human and nonhuman animal cognition. The class will also include a discussion of competing conceptual, inferential, and conceptual strategies across the disciplines that comprise cognitive science.