Info: this online course is available in English & Portuguese, open to the general public.
Nota: este curso online está disponível em inglês & português.
Nota: este curso online está disponível em inglês & português.
COURSE Nº5: "The Brain"
Description: The philosophical and empirical nature of the brain has been a source of debate for hundreds of years. We currently know way more about the brain than we knew before: for example, we know that, in average, it weighs 1,5kg; we know that it is made of many different kinds of neurons that share electric-chemical information between them; and we know that these neurons can create several different kinds of neural networks that are relevant for diverse types of psychological functions like short-term memory, emotions or creativity. Even if that’s the case, there is still a lot to be learned about the brain for the coming ages. The main goal of this course is to introduce the general public (and academics interested in the topic) to the philosophical and empirical debate about the nature of the human brain. The first session will introduce how philosophers and theorists in general conceived the brain from Ancient Greece to the 20st Century (for example Aristotle conceived the brain as a mere blood-cooling system) [Session 1]. Next, we will introduce a recent theory about the brain that turns its nature and function completely around the traditional way of conceiving the brain: instead of a passive-organ regarding the sensory input, the Predictive Processing approach will argue that the brain is a predictive machine which main function is to create hypothesis about what may be the cause of those sensory inputs; this session will have the participation of Professor Anil Seth [Session 2]. Finally, the last session will be focused on the Emotional Brain: here, we will understand how relevant is the limbic system and its relationship with fear, anxiety and the survival of the individual; this session will have the participation of Professor Joseph LeDoux.
Professor: Steven S. Gouveia holds a PhD (FCT Research) in Philosophy of the Mind/Neurophilosophy from the University of Minho (Portugal), having been a visiting researcher at the Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics Unit of the Royal Institute of Mental Health, University of Ottawa (Canada), where he is currently a PostDoc Research Fellow. He is the author and editor of 11 academic books, with the collaboration of several philosophers of mind such as Dan Dennett, Thomas Metzinger, Anil Seth, Karl Friston, Georg Northoff, among others. He co-edited the book "Philosophy of Mind: Contemporary Perspectives" (2017), "Perception, Cognition and Aesthetics" (2019) & "The Philosophy an Science of Predictive Processing" (2020). As an author, he will publish is third authored book titled "Philosophy and Neuroscience: a Methodological Anaylsis" with Palgrave Macmilliam (Nature). More information: www.stevensgouveia.weebly.com
Invited Professors:
- Anil Seth is Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience at the University of Sussex, where he is also Co-Director of the Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science. He is also the Co-Director of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) Program on Brain, Mind, and Consciousness, and of the Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarship Programme: "From Sensation and Perception to Awareness". He is the Editor-in-Chief of Neuroscience of Consciousness (Oxford University Press). He was the Conference Chair for the 16th Meeting of the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness (ASSC16, 2012) and I’ve been an ASSC ‘member at large’ since 2014. His research has been supported by the EPSRC (Leadership Fellowship), the European Research Council (ERC, Advanced Investigator Grant), the Wellcome Trust, and the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR). He just published is new book titled "Being You: a New Science of Consciousenss" (Faber & Faber) that was considered one of the The Guardian's top 7 Science Books of 2021. More info: https://www.anilseth.com/.
- Joseph LeDoux was born in 1949 in Louisiana (USA). He is a Henry and Lucy Moses Professor of Science and Neural Science, Psychology, Psychiatry and Child and Youth Psychiatry at New York University. He directs the Emotional Brain Institute at this university and the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research. He is deputy director of the Max Planck-NYU Center for Language, Music, and Emotion, and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences. LeDoux authored several important books on the brain: he is author of "Anxious", "Synaptic Self" and "The Emotional Brain", among others. He is also a singer and songwriter in folk-rock band The Amygdaloids and acoustic duo So We Are. He won several awards such as "Distinguished Scientific Contributions to Psychology"by the American Psychological Association (2010), the "Karl Spencer Lashley Award" by the American Philosophical Society (2011) and the "Gantt Medal" by the Pavlovian Society (2012). More info: www.joseph-ledoux.com/.
Structure:
Session 1: The History and Philosophy of the Brain
Session 2: The Predictive Brain with Anil Seth
Session 3: The Emotional Brain with Joseph LeDoux
To Register:
Send First and Last Name to stevensequeira92 at hotmail.com, indicating your address and phone contact. The payment details will be sent after confirmation of receipt of the registration.
Registrations are open to have access to the recordings of the course (asynchronously) and an official certificate of participation (and a book offer).
Online course recorded via Zoom.
© Steven S. Gouveia
