Philosophical conceptions of the self: implications for cognitive science

Several recently developed philosophical approaches to the self promise to enhance the exchange of ideas between the philosophy of the mind and the other cognitive sciences. This review examines two important concepts of self: the 'minimal self', a self devoid of temporal extension, and the 'narrative self', which involves personal identity and continuity across time. The notion of a minimal self is first clarified by drawing a distinction between the sense of self-agency and the sense of self-ownership for actions. This distinction is then explored within the neurological domain with specific reference to schizophrenia, in which the sense of self-agency may be disrupted. The convergence between the philosophical debate and empirical study is extended in a discussion of more primitive aspects of self and how these relate to neonatal experience and robotics. The second concept of self, the narrative self, is discussed in the light of Gazzaniga's left-hemisphere 'interpreter' and episodic memory. Extensions of the idea of a narrative self that are consistent with neurological models are then considered. The review illustrates how the philosophical approach can inform cognitive science and suggests that a two-way collaboration may lead to a more fully developed account of the self.     

The Eyelink Toolbox: Eye tracking with MATLAB and the Psychophysics Toolbox

The Eyelink Toolbox software supports the measurement of eye movements. The toolbox provides an interface between a high-level interpreted language (MATLAB), a visual display programming toolbox (Psychophysics Toolbox), and a video-based eyetracker (Eyelink). The Eyelink Toolbox enables experimenters to measure eye movements while simultaneously executing the stimulus presentation routines provided by the Psychophysics Toolbox. Example programs are included with the toolbox distribution. Information on the Eyelink Toolbox can be found at http://psychtoolbox.org/.     

Ontological Phenomenology: The Philosophical Project of Hedwig Conrad-Martius

The special importance of the system of Hedwig Conrad-Martius lies in that she takes up the ideas of her teacher Husserl and pursues them on an independent path of phenomenology carefully anchored in the history of philosophy. This above all made possible the philosophical grasping of the then revolutionary findings in the modern natural sciences, especially in physics and medicine. The question concerning the border between the natural sciences and philosophy is today still debated with just as much urgency—indeed, ethically with even more urgency—as it was in her time. By virtue of this alone, her ideas can be of great help to us. The natural scientific progress made since her time does not, however, present a barrier; rather it corresponds to the spirit of phenomenology: not to produce results with rigid intellectual frameworks, but to make available a tool with which the world in its diversity—and thus also for its modern, ever-changing issues—can be disclosed ever anew. The essay will consist of an overview of the life of Hedwig Conrad-Martius, an introduction to the essential ideas of her work: her concept of essence and her formulation of phenomenological ideation [Wesensschau], a brief sketch of her epistemology and an exposition of her ontological conception of “real ontology” [Realontologie].

Two sides of wonder: Philosophical keys to the motivation of science learning

Science education is most efficacious and enduring when undertaken within a philosophical framework akin to that of science, itself. This entails recognition that, above all, science is a mode of rational inquiry pursued by those who are curious about the natural world and motivated to seek rational answers to personally meaningful questions. The key to successful science instruction lies in fostering a student's self-motivation and productively channeling his innate curiosity. To do this a science educator must (a) convey to students an accurate and sympathetic impression of the importance of science to their cultural development; (b) help students develop an ability to evaluate information critically and arrive at logical conclusions; (c) provide students opportunities to engage in creative, personally meaningful scientific research.I would like to express my deep gratitude to Dr. S. B. Brachwitz for many helpful conversations on science education. My appreciation also goes to Trinity College for a Faculty Research Grant during the time this work was begun.     

“除黑先生”险遭杀身之祸

"除黑"是封建社会遗留下来的丧葬陋俗,"除黑先生"就是以为死者超度亡魂为业的人。改革开放后,许多农民手中有了余钱,有些人由于受     

Surrogacy: the parents' story

This qualitative study explored the experiences of 26 parents who were involved in surrogate parenting arrangements in a California-based surrogacy program. Participants were mostly white (n = 23). married (n = 25), females (n = 24), with high levels of education and income. The mean age at the time of the first child's birth was 39 yr. (SD = 5.06). The majority of parents reported having one (n = 10) or two (n = 8) children. All subjects reported infertility as their reason to explore surrogacy as a method of building a family. 18 participants chose in vitro fertilization as heir method of conception. Telephone interviews explored their decision-making, ethod of fertilization, their relationship with their surrogate, and the support that they received during the surrogacy process. Results indicate that parents were able to nticipate some potential pitfalls prior to their experience but did not realize the imortance of other potential difficulties. A conceptual model is presented with implications for helping professionals.     

Knowledge of essence: the conferralist story

Realist essentialists face a prima facie challenge in accounting for our knowledge of the essences of things, and in particular, in justifying our engaging in thought experiments to gain such knowledge. In contrast, conferralist essentialism has an attractive story to tell about how we gain knowledge of the essences of things, and how thought experiments are a justified method for gaining such knowledge. The conferralist story is told in this essay.     

“个体之我”与“哲学之我”

本文以“个体之我”与“哲学之我”的关系为基本问题,对西方现代哲学几种有代表性的个人观进行了批判性的考察.文章意图指出,哲学对“个体之我”的探讨不能忽视“哲学之我”的构建.个体不是先在的事实,保持反思性的哲学生活,始终不解地寻求“个体化理解”,才是通向“个体之我”的惟一途径.     

Language: A Toolbox for Sharing and Influencing Social Reality

ABSTRACT— The key role of language is often neglected in explicitly formulated theories of cognition, affect, and social behavior. Implicitly, though, the relationship between language and mind is at the heart of psychological science. Two major research programs—linguistic universals and linguistic relativity—originate in opposite philosophical positions, assuming either that language reflects the mind's ideas and free will or that language differences govern and restrict the mind. However, modern psychological research was able to begin illuminating the power and richness of linguistic influences only after the priority debate was given up and language and cognition were treated as integral parts of the same process. Beyond the confines of referential communication, conceived as cooperative transfer of symbols referring to common world knowledge, some of the most intriguing phenomena are detached from referential bonds, reflecting unintended, emergent, or even random outcomes of verbal interaction. Indeed, the effectiveness of verbal priming may be actually contingent on language users' failure to understand the primes' referential meanings and implications.     

The moral of the story: Exemplification and the literary work

So in literature we have two (perhaps identical) syntactically articulate vocabularies, the terms of each taking the terms of the other as referents, with both of the resultant systems — the one a system of denotation, the other of exemplification — being syntactically articulate and semantically dense. Thus, even though a literary work is articulate and may exemplify or express what is articulate, endless search is always required here as in other arts to determine precisely what is exemplified or expressed.A version of this paper was read at the annual meeting of the American Philosophical Association, Eastern Division, December 1978.