An illustration of brain areas that have localized and specific functions. These are responsible for various personality traits of a person. (This image is in the public domain.)
Instructor(s)
Prof. Alex Byrne
Prof. Pawan Sinha
MIT Course Number
24.08J / 9.48J
As Taught In
Spring 2009
Level
Undergraduate
Course Description
Course Features
- Guest lecture - video
- Selected lecture notes
- Assignments: written (no examples)
- Exams (no solutions)
Course Description
This course provides an introduction to important philosophical questions about the mind, specifically those that are intimately connected with contemporary psychology and neuroscience. Are our concepts innate or are they acquired by experience? And what does it even mean to call a concept 'innate'? Are 'mental images' pictures in the head? Is color in the mind or in the world? Is the mind nothing more than the brain? Can there be a science of consciousness? The course includes guest lectures by philosophers and cognitive scientists.