The course of Theoretical Philosophy is among the characterizing activities of the MA Programme in Philosophical Sciences. It aims to provide an in-depth understanding of some classical problems of the philosophical tradition (topics in ontology, epistemology, philosophy of mind and agency). Particular emphasis will be granted to the interplay between philosophy and science in the conviction that they should interact in the attempt to offer an integrated conception of the world and ourselves. Upon completion of the course students will have acquired analytical knowledge and argumentation skills in relation to the topics covered in the course; capacity to read and analyse the sources and the relevant critical debate; capacity to write an end-of-course paper.
teacher profile teaching materials
* Viola, M. (2017). Carving mind at brain’s joints. The debate on cognitive ontology. Phenomenology and Mind, (12), 162-172.
* Viola, M. (2021). Beyond the Platonic Brain: facing the challenge of individual differences in function-structure mapping. Synthese, 199(1-2), 2129-2155.
* Poldrack, R. A. (2010). Mapping mental function to brain structure: how can cognitive neuroimaging succeed?. Perspectives on psychological science, 5(6), 753-761.
* McCaffrey, J. B. (2023). Evolving Concepts of Functional Localization. Philosophy Compass, e12914.
* (other papers communicated during the lessons)
For non-attendees: above papers + 2 books between 2, 3 and/or 4-- please send an email to the professor.
2) Michael Anderson (2014). After Phrenology. Neural Reuse and the Interactive Brain. MIT Press.
3) Muhammad Ali Khalidi (2023). Cognitive Ontology. Cambridge University Press.
4) Luiz Pessoa (2022). The Entangled Brain: How Perception, Cognition, and Emotion Are Woven Together. The MIT Press.
Programme
The course provides an overview to the debate on the use of neuroscientific (and in particular functional magnetic resonance imaging) data to reform the ontology of the mental. The first part offers a historical introduction to debates on the metaphysics of the mental in philosophy of mind, in the foundations of experimental psychology and in the (proto-)history of cognitive neuroscience. A second part offers a historical-epistemological introduction to cognitive neuroscience, with a special emphasis on the uses (and abuses) of functional magnetic resonance imaging. Building on these introductory themes, the issue of the uncertainty of psychological categories (the cognitive ontology) and how neuroscience can enable them to be revised will be addressed. This will be addressed in the third and most substantial part of the course, in which different approaches to reforming cognitive ontology will be examined. In the fourth and utmost part of the course, some case studies will be examined, such as the neural correlates of basic emotions or the Fusiform Facial Area.Core Documentation
For attendees: the following papers:* Viola, M. (2017). Carving mind at brain’s joints. The debate on cognitive ontology. Phenomenology and Mind, (12), 162-172.
* Viola, M. (2021). Beyond the Platonic Brain: facing the challenge of individual differences in function-structure mapping. Synthese, 199(1-2), 2129-2155.
* Poldrack, R. A. (2010). Mapping mental function to brain structure: how can cognitive neuroimaging succeed?. Perspectives on psychological science, 5(6), 753-761.
* McCaffrey, J. B. (2023). Evolving Concepts of Functional Localization. Philosophy Compass, e12914.
* (other papers communicated during the lessons)
For non-attendees: above papers + 2 books between 2, 3 and/or 4-- please send an email to the professor.
2) Michael Anderson (2014). After Phrenology. Neural Reuse and the Interactive Brain. MIT Press.
3) Muhammad Ali Khalidi (2023). Cognitive Ontology. Cambridge University Press.
4) Luiz Pessoa (2022). The Entangled Brain: How Perception, Cognition, and Emotion Are Woven Together. The MIT Press.
Reference Bibliography
Papers presented during the classesAttendance
Attendance is optional but strongly recommendedType of evaluation
Oral exam. Erasmus students may choose to be examined in either English or Italian, as they prefer.