Information in Explaining Cognition: How to Evaluate It?
Philosophies April 21, 2022 Nir Fresco
The truism that the brain processes information or that cognition is information processing is accepted in cognitive science, yet it is unclear how to evaluate such claims without a specification of what "information" means in neurocognitive theories. This article systematically identifies key features of information that information-based neurocognitive theories posit, which can reveal the explanatory role of information and serve as desiderata for evaluating candidate theories of information. After discussing explanation in cognitive science and its implications for information, three notions are introduced: natural, sensory, and endogenous information. Six desiderata are identified and defended based on cognitive scientific practices, and the global workspace theory of consciousness is used as a case study that arguably posits five or six corresponding features of information.