From data processing to mental organs: an interdisciplinary path to cognitive neuroscience.
Manoj Patharkar
Mens Sana Monographs January 2011 DOI: 10.4103/0973-1229.77438 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Chomsky Computer system Human brain Language faculty Mental organs Mind |
| Key points | Argues that the brain can be productively understood through a dual approach: as a data-processing system analogous to a computer, and as a superstructure of intricately linked 'mental organs' in the Chomskyean sense. Proposes that this integrated framework can advance an empirical scientific understanding of 'mind' and overcome implied mind-body duality, with the 'language faculty' as the most extensively studied mental organ. |
Abstract
Human brain is a highly evolved coordinating mechanism in the species Homo sapiens. It is only in the last 100 years that extensive knowledge of the intricate structure and complex functioning of the human brain has been acquired, though a lot is yet to be known. However, from the beginning of civilisation, people have been conscious of a 'mind' which has been considered the origin of all scientific and cultural development. Philosophers have discussed at length the various attributes of consciousness. At the same time, most of the philosophical or scientific frameworks have directly or indirectly implied mind-body duality. It is now imperative that we develop an integrated approach to understand the interconnection between mind and consciousness on one hand and brain on the other. This paper begins with the proposition that the structure of the brain is analogous, at least to certain extent, to that of the computer system. Of course, it is much more sophisticated and complex. The second proposition is that the Chomskyean concept of 'mental organs' is a good working hypothesis that tries to characterise this complexity in terms of an innate cognitive framework. By following this dual approach, brain as a data processing system and brain as a superstructure of intricately linked mental organs, we can move toward a better understanding of 'mind' within the framework of empirical science. The one 'mental organ' studied extensively in Chomskyean terms is 'language faculty' which is unique in its relation to brain, mind and consciousness.