If I were to touch the part of your brain that usually processes sound –would you 'hear' my hand? or –would you ‘feel’ my hand? In other words, Is the subjective sensory experience dependent –on the sensory system stimulated? or –on the stimulating stimulus? -Provide real life examples to support your claim -Be ready to defend/articulate your claim (e.g., drugs) Group activity

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See - the path may be altered. - physiologically (i.e. normal), - pathologically (i.e. abnormal), and - experimentally -The same is true for other paths (e.g. phantom limbs) Detached Blind Electrical Stimulation LSD Schizophrenia Dreams Migraine Stroke Multiple Sclerosis Rub your eyes Hallucination Body Mind

The subjective experience depends on the specific nerve stimulated, not the stimulus. The same nerve can be stimulated by different stimuli (e.g. pressure, light) The brain affects the mind Functions are localized in the brain Conclusions

the 'mind - body' problem Psychology: –In this course, we will assumes that mental activity has a biological basis (behaviors, emotions, thoughts, desires, are the result of physical processes). –There is great amount of scientific evidence for this claim Philosophy of mind –It questions whether the brain implement the mind –Does mental activity have a biological basis? And how is that possible? This is the:

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See Body Mind Suggested reading: ‘worse than creationism’ P. BloomP. Bloom

The Mind-Body Problem: There are two sides to this debate Dualism – the brain and mind are related but separate - Decartes’ view - consistent with the idea of a non-material soul - consistent with the idea of free will - evidence from cognitive development suggests humans are biased toward categorizing the world as animate vs. inanimate Materialism (monism)- the brain and mind are the same Recommended book: Matter and Consciousness, by Paul M. Churchland