In ancient Greece, Stoic philosophers believed the Earth would be periodically destroyed by fire (Ekpyrosis) in a ritual cleansing before starting again. Stoics usually believed this event occurred when civilisation was at its very height of sophistication and complexity (like…
11 March 2022h15-17 Greenwhich Mean Time / 16-18 CET(check your local time here) Embodied simulation and its role in cognition The next Neural Mechanisms Online webinar— “Embodied simulation and its role in cognition”—will be delivered by Vittorio GALLESE on Friday…
Many would feel relief that we were not alone. The night sky would seem a less scarily empty place, and our position, balanced on this ball of spinning rock, less precarious. Many would be glad, too, that the responsibilities associated…
One answer to this question is that if we rely purely on the result of blackbox algorithms, we will not advance our medical knowledge. Physicians typically learn and improve their skills over time. Senior clinicians are more knowledgeable than their…
Many who had no doubts whatsoever about having themselves vaccinated against COVID, are much more hesitant when it comes to vaccinating their young children. Is such hesitancy justified? In this Thinking Out Loud interview, Katrien Devolder talks to Dominic Wilkinson,…
See the below announcement for an exciting author-meets-critics section at the Central APA this week, organized by the Deep South Philosophy of Neuroscience Workgroup!
Saying that we should not focus on medical technologies in need of sophisticated maintenance also leads nowhere: usually the reason they are developed is that there is no easier treatment. Refusing to develop such devices on the grounds that they…
Check her recent podcast here. Brain Mechanisms And The Platform For Morality The next Neural Mechanisms Online webinar— “Brain mechanisms and the platform for morality”—will be delivered by Patricia Churchland on Friday the 25th. See below for details about the…
One reason doctors are frustrated at providing critical care resources to those who failed to get vaccinated is because it seems like those patients are ‘free-riding’. The unvaccinated enjoy the benefits of having high levels of vaccination in society, but…
The Sue Gray report calls them “gatherings”. “Party” has been used mostly by the media to distinguish between the shameful gatherings of certain people – the parties – and the less shameful gatherings of other people– the after-work drinks. They…
“I won’t make a difference.” “It’s the government’s problem.” “I’ve got enough to do already!” Then they come out, the reasons for apathy. We’ve all heard them. We’ve probably all said some of them. But do they really excuse us?…
11 February 2022h15-17 Greenwhich Mean Time / 16-18 CET(check your local time here) Abstract. Multi-layer artificial neural networks (ANNs) have been used to model many different neural and cognitive processes ranging from vision to memory to motor control. The recent…
One reason provided for the U-turn on COVID vaccines is the fear of critical staff shortages. But that would not necessarily apply if staffing problems in the NHS are addressed. In the US, large hospitals that have mandated flu vaccination…
Lessing’s prickliness could also make him immune to the delusions about German cultural superiority expounded by other thinkers of his age, however. Two threads run through Lessing’s diverse reflections: a deep philosophical pessimism inherited from his idol Arthur Schopenhauer, and…
