PHIL 306 Philosophy of Mind
This course investigates the nature of minds, considering such questions as: Can minds be reduced to brains? If so, how can they represent the world, or carry meaning? And how can we be rational agents? If, on the other hand, minds are immaterial, how could they emerge out of, and interact with, the physical world? Can we create machines with minds? Is there a difference between simulating intelligence and actually having it? Could things with artificial intelligence be subjects of consciousness? What does it mean to have consciousness, or be a subject, anyway? Topics at the intersection of philosophy and the sciences may include: the unity of consciousness and split-brains; autism and theory of mind; animals and self-awareness.