Universität Wien
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180223 SE Philosophical Puzzles and Paradoxes (2023W)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 18 - Philosophie
Continuous assessment of course work

Hinweis der SPL Philosophie:

Das Abgeben von ganz oder teilweise von einem KI-tool (z.B. ChatGPT) verfassten Texten als Leistungsnachweis (z.B. Seminararbeit) ist nur dann erlaubt, wenn dies von der Lehrveranstaltungsleitung ausdrücklich als mögliche Arbeitsweise genehmigt wurde. Auch hierbei müssen direkt oder indirekt zitierte Textstellen wie immer klar mit Quellenangabe ausgewiesen werden.

Die Lehrveranstaltungsleitung kann zur Überprüfung der Autorenschaft einer abgegebenen schriftlichen Arbeit ein notenrelevantes Gespräch (Plausibilitätsprüfung) vorsehen, das erfolgreich zu absolvieren ist.
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 25 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Tuesday 10.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 17.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 24.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 31.10. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 07.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 14.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 21.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 28.11. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 05.12. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 12.12. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 09.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 16.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 23.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien
  • Tuesday 30.01. 15:00 - 16:30 Hörsaal 3C, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/3. Stock, 1010 Wien

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

Goals: This seminar is designed as an introduction to the philosophy of mind in the analytic tradition. In order to familiarize students with some of the main questions and debates in the field, we will discuss competing theories and arguments about the nature of the human mind, thought, and reasoning. In the first part of the course, we will mainly try to understand by virtue of what we can be regarded as thinking and reasoning, hence the relation between physical states (brain) and mental states (mind). This issue will lead us to investigate, in the second part of the course, the relationship between human cognition and artificial intelligence. We will discuss some of the central arguments for and against the view that machines such as sufficiently powerful computers can be regarded as thinking and reasoning.

Content: Right now, you are having a visual experience (probably of your computer screen). Your visual experience is certainly related to what is going on in your brain. But what is the nature of this relationship? Is your visual experience identical to a state of your brain? Is the former reducible to the latter? If not, are they two separate kinds or categories of entities? But wouldn't endorsing some kind of dualism commit us to the claim that AI is impossible? Those are some of the fascinating philosophical puzzles we will address in the seminar by discussing some of the major works and arguments in the contemporary philosophy of mind.

Method: Each session will be devoted to the analysis of a pivotal text to illustrate a relevant theory, argument, or viewpoint the in philosophy of mind. Students will work on those papers in small groups and present them in the seminar. We will collectively discuss the merits and shortcomings of each of them. Students will then choose one of the discussed issues or research questions and address it in their final seminar essay, incorporating the literature presented. Alternatively, they may opt for a final oral exam, if required.

Assessment and permitted materials

Text presentation; active participation in seminar discussions; final seminar essay (or final oral exam, if required).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Seminar outcomes: text presentation 30%, participation 20%; final seminar essay/oral exam 50%.

Examination topics

• Smart, J.J.C. (1959). “Sensations and Brain Processes”, The Philosophical Review, Vol. 68, No. 2: 141-156.{Suggested further reading: Place, U. T. (1956), “Is consciousness a brain process”, British Journal of Psychology, 47, 1: 44 – 50}.
• Ryle, G. (1949). “Descartes’ myth”, in Id. The Concept of Mind, University of Chicago Press.
• Putnam, H. (1975). “The nature of mental states”, in Id. Mind, Language and Reality, Cambridge University Press.
• Churchland, P.M. (1981). “Eliminative materialism and the propositional attitudes”, Journal of Philosophy, 78: 67-90.
• Nagel, T. (1974). “What is it like to be a bat?”, Philosophical Review, 83: 435–456
• Dennett, D.C. (1971). “Intentional Systems”, Journal of Philosophy, 68: 87-106.
• Fodor, J. (1987). “ Meaning and the World Order”, in Id. Psychosemantics. Harvard University Press. {Suggested further reading: Fodor, J. (1987). “The persistence of attitudes”, in Id. Psychosemantics. Harvard University Press}.
• Davidson, D. (2001). “Mental Events”, in ID. Essays on Actions and Events, Oxford Academic, Oxford.
• Turing, A. M. (1950). “Computing Machinery and Intelligence”, Mind, 59: 433-60.
• Searle, J. R. (1980). “Minds, brains, and programs”, Behav. Brain Sci., vol. 3, no. 03. {Suggested further reading: Moural, J. (2003). “The Chinese Room Argument”, in Barry Smith (ed.), John Searle, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; Anderson, D. & Copeland, J.B. (2002). “Artificial Life and the Chinese Room Argument”, Artificial Life, 8(4): 371–378}.
• Clark, A. & Chalmers, D.J. (1998). “The extended mind”, Analysis, 58 (1):7-19.
• Boden, M.A. (1998). “Creativity and artificial intelligence”, Artificial Intelligence, 103 (1-2):347-356.
• Sullins, J. P. (2006). When is a Robot a Moral Agent? International Review of Information Ethics 6 (12): 23-30.

Reading list

There is no mandatory textbook for this module. However, there are many excellent introductions to the philosophy of mind that students can usefully consult, such as:

• Clark, A. (2014). Mindware. An Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Science, 2nd. Ed., Oxford University Press.
• Crane, T. (2015). The Mechanical Mind: A Philosophical Introduction to Minds, Machines and Mental Representation, 3rd. Ed., Routledge.
• Heil, J. (2012). The Philosophy of Mind. A Contemporary Introduction, 3rd. Ed., Routledge.
• Jackson, F. & Braddon-Mitchell, D. (1997). Philosophy of Mind and Cognition, Blackwell.
• Kim, J. (2010). Philosophy of Mind, 3rd. Ed., Westview Press.
• P. Mandik, P. (2013). This is Philosophy of Mind, Wiley Blackwell.
• Ravenscroft, I. (2005). Philosophy of Mind: A Beginner’s Guide, Oxford University Press.
• Rey, G. (1997). Contemporary Philosophy of Mind, Wiley.

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Tu 10.10.2023 17:07