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Back to Philosophy and the Sciences: Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences

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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26 - 50 of 311 Reviews for Philosophy and the Sciences: Introduction to the Philosophy of Cognitive Sciences

By Natalia N A

Aug 17, 2020

This course was a lot of fun! Though not very interactive, I enjoy the more traditional learning style of lectures - the lectures themselves were well-organised and well-structured, very informative and easy to understand, provided lots of clear examples, and provided a new perspective in the way I understand cognition and the philosophy of science.

By Nat T

Nov 4, 2017

Excellent overview of Philosophy and the Cognitive Sciences. Week three was especially interesting. There were only a couple lectures I found lacked sufficient explanation for me to fully grasp the concepts. The additional reading suggestions were excellent! Thank you so much the instructors and coordinators for this course!

By Shirley C

Aug 12, 2020

The course lectures, videos, readings etc were great...but...for a course that I purchased, I assumed that there would be more required (i.e. short answers, or more essays for marks). Can i really say that I took a Philosophy course at a university level if there is not much in the way of work required from the student?

By Lee W

Sep 9, 2023

This course was great! My interest resides in the Philosophy sid of this philosophy/science partnership.That being said, I have strong interest in the philosophical implications of scientific modeling and representation . This dual interest is what made this course so rewarding and useful to my personal journey.

By Elsie C

May 3, 2021

Another very interesting course from the University of Edinburgh on Philosophy. The lecturers provide excellent examples that explain concepts, and they covered a variety of really interesting topics. Definitely would recommend to others who have a general, beginners interest in philosophy and the sciences.

By Kseniia

Feb 25, 2019

I really liked the course! It was very interesting to listen to several different people, the professors were all friendly and easy to understand, also because the university is specialized they look really involved and love their subject, so a lot of stuff they said made me think from new perspectives :)

By Grzegorz N

Jul 6, 2018

Really well designed and conducted introductory course to philosophy of the cognitive sciences. A lot of complementary material in form of articles and videos. Well balanced quizzes help to organize new knowledge and to find out what need additional attention to properly comprehend course material.

By Marie N

Jul 15, 2022

Great course! Thank you for the fascinating and well-structured materials. The course does of great job of making complex material accessible. I agree with others that it could expanded more on certain topics or explore them more in-depth (e.g. in weeks on consciousness & embodied cognition).

By Carlos G

Nov 29, 2019

Foi uma experiência maravilhosa onde pude aprender com grandes estudiosos dedicados e inteligente sobre a filosofia e a ciência, como que elas se interagem. Saí do curso mais motivado e rico interiormente. Muito obrigado a todos que se dedicaram para promover o curso. MUITO OBRIGADO ! ! !

By 赵子涵

Feb 2, 2020

This course gives me a brief understanding of cognitive science.I am now very curious about the term embodiment.I heard that merleau ponty also frequently use this term for his philosophical and psychological Analysis,I want search some book to know more about it.Thanks for the course.

By Trí L

Apr 9, 2021

Very useful introductory course to anyone who wants to know more about the mind and consciousness. The course gives a good summary about how much we have known about the mind, from evolutionary aspects to AI analogies. It is inspiring to those who wants to build a career on the field.

By Richie P

Jun 9, 2020

The course was a bit short but packed a good deal of information about the philosophy of cognitive sciences. Be sure to use the supplemental material and doing some further exploration of your own. Overall, a fantastic course for anyone with a scientific or philosophy oriented mind.

By Ataollah D

Jul 24, 2020

It is a very useful course that introduces the participants with current major axioms of philosophical and psychological research in realms of cognitive sciences and artificial intelligence.

a very good starting point to find your specific passion in this field and build upon it.

By Tanya O

Apr 21, 2021

This course is exciting. Someone left a comment that this “course is about robotics.” Unless I misunderstood what the course was about the aspects of “figuring out robotics,” could this lead human beings to be able to teach artificial intelligence to create its own thoughts?

By Minuda R

Mar 15, 2023

Dear sir/madam,

I'm Lakmali Kumarasinghe. I accidentally put my son's name as the name on the certificate. But I'm the one who did the course. It'll be a great pleasure if you could rename the certificate as 'Lakmali Kumarasinghe'.

Thank you,

Lakmali Kumarasinghe.

By Filio R A M

Jul 20, 2020

Really amazing to broaden your perception of the mind and its relationship to the environment, it definitely gives you a deep sense of understanding the topics portrayed here and it is a powerful tool for any student interested in cognitive sciences

By Dessitti J S

Nov 1, 2020

I have been interested in Cognitive Science since a long time. But I never really got to explore this field. Now this course helped me understand the basics and definitely began as starting point for my journey into the field of Cognitive Science.

By Matthew R

Nov 24, 2020

My suggestions are as follows:

Testing feedback for this course could be much improved.

For the videos I would add a question or two within them to make sure people are following along, I also believe the duration of the videos should be shorter

By Muhip T

May 30, 2020

Very fun, non-exhausting introduction to the very interesting subject of cognitive sciences. Video lectures are of high quality. It is relatively short and quizzes were extremely easy but this was exactly what I wanted so I'm not complaining.

By Thomas J H

Jun 27, 2018

Highly recommended. Clear on what is science, what is philosophy, and what the convergent areas of inquiry are. High on sense, short on bombast, and deeply intellectually responsible. (The anti-Daniel Dennett approach). Much appreciated.

By William F

Oct 19, 2020

The course was well structured and packaged with excellent presentations. While the content could be complicated, if you let it, the subject matter itself was presented in a simplified method which was an actual example of cognitions.

By David M

Dec 12, 2018

I enjoyed the format, it made it very easy to learn and you can read as much as you like with the recommended reading list. Very thought provoking and well prsented. I would recommend it for anyone with an interest in philosophy.

By Małgorzata S

Aug 6, 2017

An extremely informative course with a lot of optional readings for further study if one wishes to. Very accessible in terms of explanation. I can highly recommend to anyone interested in any aspect of cognition and perception.

By Renee K

Jun 17, 2020

I've enjoyed this course although I wish it was much more longer...The amount of information about cognitive science, evolutionary Psychology, Consciousness, and several other topics that are full of knowledgable information.

By Pablo G A

Jun 21, 2017

I think this course is a great introduction to the philosophy of cognitive sciences. I recommend it to everyone who is interested in philosophy. Also, I took advantage of the course for practising English language. Thanks!