Winter Semester 2016
Instructor: Dr. Hong Yu Wong (CIN) and Dr. Chiara Brozzo (MPI)
Cross-listed in: Philosophy, Cognitive Science
Time and Location:
Thursdays 4-6 pm, Forum Scientiarum, Großer Seminarraum
Theme:
Predictive coding as the architecture of the mind/brain
Reading:
The primary reading is Andy Clark's Surfing Uncertainty (Oxford University Press 2016).
We will also read some related articles along the way, both scientific and philosophical, to be determined by the interests of the participants as the semester unfolds.
Goal:
Our goal will be to understand the predictive coding framework, both in terms of its scientific and philosophical implications. How does it differ from earlier frameworks, such as the Bayesian Brain framework? How does the framework advance the discussion about the architecture of the mind (concerning modularity and the connectionism vs. classical AI debate)? How does it change how we view perception, action, and everything in between?
Registration:
Students wishing to participate in the seminar must email action.in.tuebingen@gmail.com to register. Please state your name, degree you are studying for (e.g. MA), subject (e.g. philosophy, cogsci), whether you are taking the seminar for credit and how many credits you intend to do.
Format:
The seminar will be conducted as a seminar over the semester, consisting of 10 sessions.
Each session we will read and discuss one chapter from the book. During the first, introductory session, the instructor will provide an overview of the themes of the book.
Schedule:
Nov 3 - First session: introduction to the themes of Surfing Uncertainty
Further sessions: Nov 10, 17, 24, Dec 8, Jan 12, 19, Feb 2, 16
Prerequisites:
Students are expected to have taken prior classes in philosophy of mind and/or philosophy of language at the Hauptseminar level.
Credit:
Students taking the seminar for credit must prepare a 2-3 page handout that critically discusses one of the chapters (to be agreed with the instructor) and write an essay of at least 3000 words on a theme related to Clark's monograph. The essay is due on the 1st of May, 2017.