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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Philosophy and the Sciences: Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences by The University of Edinburgh

4.6
stars
1,359 ratings

About the Course

Course Description What is our role in the universe as human agents capable of knowledge? What makes us intelligent cognitive agents seemingly endowed with consciousness? This is the second part of the course 'Philosophy and the Sciences', dedicated to Philosophy of the Cognitive Sciences. Scientific research across the cognitive sciences has raised pressing questions for philosophers. The goal of this course is to introduce you to some of the main areas and topics at the key juncture between philosophy and the cognitive sciences. Each week we will introduce you to some of these important questions at the forefront of scientific research. We will explain the science behind each topic in a simple, non-technical way, while also addressing the philosophical and conceptual questions arising from it. Areas you’ll learn about will include: Philosophy of psychology, among whose issues we will cover the evolution of the human mind and the nature of consciousness. Philosophy of neurosciences, where we’ll consider the nature of human cognition and the relation between mind, machines, and the environment. Learning objectives Gain a fairly well-rounded view on selected areas and topics at the intersection of philosophy and the sciences Understand some key questions, and conceptual problems arising in the cognitive sciences. Develop critical skills to evaluate and assess these problems. Suggested Readings To accompany 'Philosophy and the Sciences', we are pleased to announce a tie-in book from Routledge entitled 'Philosophy and the Sciences for Everyone'. This course companion to the 'Philosophy and the Sciences' course was written by the Edinburgh Philosophy and the Sciences team expressly with the needs of MOOC students in mind. 'Philosophy and the Sciences for Everyone' contains clear and user-friendly chapters, chapter summaries, glossary, study questions, suggestions for further reading and guides to online resources. Please note, this companion book is optional - all the resources needed to complete the course are available freely and listed on the course site....

Top reviews

CG

Feb 10, 2020

this course was very broad and incredibly interesting. I highly recommend it as introduction to the philosophy of science, but I have to warn you: Once you have started, your journey won't stop here!

AS

Jun 24, 2020

this is the great course for the people who are pursuing their carer in philosophy, philosophy of mind to be more precise and also for the people who are thinking of doing psychology later anytime.

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276 - 300 of 311 Reviews for Philosophy and the Sciences: Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences

By Daniel G

Jan 15, 2021

I was expecting a bit more of Philosophy of research methods

By Carola S

Jul 25, 2020

Very interesting course and could have been longer.

By scalesr4

Aug 5, 2017

I love these topics and all of the implications.

By Madhura A

Jul 4, 2020

A very interesting and well structured course.

By JEEVA T

Jul 19, 2020

I'm really happy doing this course

By 梅思远

May 4, 2020

a brief introduction to the topic.

By Sherry P

Aug 19, 2020

Challenging, but fun.

By sidra a

Aug 14, 2023

Very interesting

By Dr C J W

Jan 25, 2019

I came to update my existing knowledge of Cognitive Science (which dates from the 1990s), and this short course worked well enough for that.

However, it was a bit variable in quality for me. Andy Clark was okay, I got annoyed with the Philosophy of Consciousness lecture (probably not the lecturer's fault, more the terms of the debate), but I really loved Series's lecture on the Bayesian Brain.

The quizzes will not leave you feeling you have achieved great things, however - too easy. I won't be purchasing a certificate for my wall.

By Marcel D S

Jun 16, 2017

Nice introduction to the philosophy of cognitive sciences. As a psychology undergraduate, I have seen some of the material before but still, I've learned a thing or two. My biggest problem with the course is that it's very short and the quizzes are no real challenge. It took me three days to finish this course with 100% accuracy which diminishes the value of the certificate. However, the course recommends some interesting readings with which I'll spend a bit more time with.

By Anjali N

Nov 4, 2020

I found it okay-ish. Some of the abstract concepts explained by the lecturers can be taught in simpler easier to understand ways. I thought it was my problem at first, not being a native English speaker, but I was able to find a lot of resources online explaining the same concepts in easier ways. So I'd definitely recommend the staff to re-work the lecture material keeping in mind the diverse audience on the internet!

By Nina

Jul 19, 2021

This course is very accessible and the explanations in the videos are clear and concise. However, it is not very detailed - the videos give a very introductory and somewhat superficial overview. This is useful for someone who has never read any philosophy of mind or cognitive science before, but if you have a bit of familiarity with this fields, this course may be too easy for you.

By Hamad M

Jul 6, 2020

the sessions lack review question, either in the middle or the end of the session. the marking scheme is stringent with an 'all or nothing' way. half correct answers will be marked as Zero, making it difficult to know one's mistakes. Interesting course an new information, but give the professors a chair, they get distracted standing up.

By Alina K

Jun 8, 2023

I think you should revise the quesitons about embodied cognition, especially on bistable images. I think this question is incorrect and contradicts what is known about bistable images. there is a plephora of articles on PubMed on it. A bistastable image is about 2 interpretations, that is why it has a prefix 'bi', meaning 'two'.

By Zhou Y

Jun 17, 2017

The course is just a brief introduction to the topic. The content itself has some sparkling points. The main issue is that, there isn't a lot of correlation between the course itself with the quizzes. Making the quizzes not a very good way to self-evaluate and self-reflect on the content.

By Aastha

Jun 18, 2020

A good introduction for those looking to acquaint themselves with the philosophy of cognitive science and what it entails. But there is not a lot of depth. So if you're already familiar with the basic ideas of bayesian cognitive science, embodiment, etc., this is not for you.

By Caroline G S

May 3, 2020

A lot of this material was interesting, but it didn't seem to hang together as a whole, and I didn't feel that it fully addressed the questions mentioned in the course description--there wasn't a lot from the philosophy point of view.

By Esther R

Dec 17, 2018

It is an introductory course, it makes you curious about the topic but I found the last essay too complex for the level taught in the course. I would have liked it to be longer and that the weekly lectures were more linked.

By Amanda V

Nov 9, 2020

the idea of the course is interesting, but I think that some topics are complicated and uninteresting. I expected other issues to be addressed. The firsties lesons was the best for me.

By Heike K M

May 8, 2018

Very interesting and mind opening course. I highly recommand it to those who are interested in the cross field of psychology, philosophy & technology.

By Aviram F

Jan 19, 2018

Interesting videos, but quite basic. Would be good to include more cognitive psychology experiments and cases involving patients

By Cliff S

Sep 18, 2016

Very nice course, active forum, no issues technical or otherwise -but- it is more about science than Philosophy.

By Satyajit K

Mar 11, 2021

The last segment on embodiment is quite difficult to appreciate and the content is not in well flow.

By Cindy L

Jan 13, 2019

Interesting subject, but the course is only a quick introduction and doesn't go into much detail.

By Antoine G

May 12, 2018

The course was interesting but I would have liked it to be more comprehensive and detailed.