Week 2

Question 1

Define: philosophy

Answer 1

the study of theories of a particular branch of knowledge; search for knowledge; identify and define problems and propose solutions

Question 2

Define: problem

Answer 2

a difficult situation that needs to be addressed

• Defining concepts/ phenomenon (Example: what is the mind)
• Explaining why something occurs (Example: why do we experience joy the way we do?)

Question 3

Define: solution

Answer 3

the means of solving a problem and the action of solving a problem

• In mathematics: apply well defined formulas to obtain an answer
• In comp-sci: process of writing a program to perform a task
• In philosophy: solve problems using reasoning

Question 4

Define: mind body problem

Answer 4

• is the mind the same thing as the body
• is the mind physical? Is physical world = mental world?
• addresses how psychological or mental properties are related tophysical properties

Question 5

Define: nature of consciousness

Answer 5

How and why does a mind experience sensations and emotions the way it does

Question 6

Define: knowledge acquisition problem

Answer 6

Are people predisposed to acquire knowledge or is all knowledge learned?

Question 7

Define: monism

Answer 7

• solution to the mind body problem
• the view that there is one kind of substance in the universe
• 1 world (mind = body)

Question 8

Define: idealism

Answer 8

view that everything in the universe is nonphysical (ether? Ideas? thoughts?)

Question 9

Define: physicalism

Answer 9

belief that everything in the universe is made up of neurons, molecules, or ions

Question 10

Define: dualism

Answer 10

• solution to the mind body problem

- 2 worlds (mind =/ body)

Question 11

Define: classical dualism/ substance dualism

Answer 11

• belief that the mind and body are composed of different substances
• Physical and non-physical

Question 12

Define: property dualism

Answer 12

• Mind and body have different characteristics:
• Body is tangible
• Ideas are not tangible
• Mind and body may or not be made up of the same substance

Question 13

Define: philosophical functionalism

Answer 13

• One way of getting around the mind-body problem to study the mind
• The view that mental states are defined in terms
  of the operation or processes of physical states

Question 14

Define: physical kinds

Answer 14

things having the same physical composition

- 2 computer chips made of silicon are made of the same physical kinds

Question 15

Define: functional kinds

Answer 15

2 kinds of things perform exactly the same functions (example: human brain vs brain made by tech) - retrieve, represent information, organize information, etc

Question 16

Define: physical state

Answer 16

The condition of the components of a physical body at a specific time

Question 17

Define: mental state

Answer 17

The representations in the mind at a specific time

Question 18

Define: quale/qualia

Answer 18

unit of consciousness; quality or property as perceived or experienced by a person

• qualia (plural)
• What is it like to experience something (eat an apple, watch the sunset, fall in love)

Question 19

Define: phenomenal concept of mind

Answer 19

• perceptible through the senses of immediate experiences

- How the mind experiences the senses (heat, cold, red, soft touch, etc)

Question 20

Define: psychological concept of mind

Answer 20

The study of the mind and how it might cause
behavior
Explain how mental states arise
Why do you see red?
-light of a certain frequency stimulates red-green
optic cells in the retina

Question 21

Define: easy problem of consciousness

Answer 21

• are those that can be solved by cognitive science and explained in terms of computational or neural mechanisms.”
• An objective explanation
• Can be explained in terms of activities of physical objects (nerve cells)

Question 22

Define: hard problem of consciousness

Answer 22

• are those that explain subjective experience.
• John experiences a sunset on a beach. Why does John experience it this way? What if ewoks experience this scene differently? How do you explain an ewoks’ subjective experience?

Question 23

Define: explanatory gap

Answer 23

• implication of having 2 problems that require explanations using different terminologies
• “subjective human experience may not be fully explained by an objective account using physical and mechanical processes…”

Question 24

Define: emergence/emergent properties

Answer 24

• An experience, mental representation or process
  originally does not exist until the physical state of
  the body acts in a certain way

Question 25

Define: reduction

Answer 25

Explain something in terms of its more basic parts
- An example of reduction:
- Consider an action:
Explained in terms of a group of motor neurons controlled by the neurons in the brain.
Neurons made up of chemicals, actions can be explained in terms of chemicals

Question 26

Define: consciousness

Answer 26

the state of being awake and aware of one’s surroundings.

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