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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences : Philosophy

Postgraduate Course: The Computational Mind MSc (PHIL11115)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryComputation is the dominant approach to explaining how the mind works within psychology and neuroscience. Artificial intelligence also now holds out the promise of recreating human-like mental capacities in computing machines. This seems to suggest that cognition (thought, perception, even emotion) is a kind of computation. This course introduces the philosophical background to computational approach to the mind, exploring some foundational questions and challenges that it faces.
Course description Topics covered by the course include:

- History of the computational theory of mind, from cybernetics to functionalism
- Core commitments of the computational theory of mind (representation, realisation, etc.)
- Is your brain a computer?
- Can computation explain perception?
- Philosophical critiques of computationalism
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. articulate in their own terms the central commitments of the computational theory of mind
  2. explain how developments in the sciences have influenced the computational theory of mind
  3. critically read a difficult philosophical text
  4. develop their own arguments for and against the philosophical views discussed in the course
  5. demonstrate the ability to actively engage in critical analysis through synchronous and asynchronous seminars
Reading List
Representative Texts:
Haugeland, John (1985) Artificial Intelligence: The Very Idea. Cambridge, MA: MIT
Press
Husbands, Phil and Owen Holland (2008) The Mechanical Mind in History.
Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
Sprevak, Mark and Matteo Colombo (2018) The Routledge Handbook of the
Computational Mind. New York: Routledge
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Mindsets: Enquiry and lifelong learning; Outlook and engagement
Skill groups: Personal and intellectual autonomy; Communication
Keywordscomputation,mind,artificial intelligence,brain
Contacts
Course organiserDr Mazviita Chirimuuta
Tel:
Email: m.chirimuuta@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMs Becky Verdon
Tel:
Email: Rebecca.Verdon@ed.ac.uk
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