Emergent models of supple dynamics in life and mind.
M A Bedau
Brain and Cognition June 1997 DOI: 10.1006/brcg.1997.0904 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that the suppleness of mental phenomena resists precise formulation, undermining functionalist definitions of mental capacities, and proposes that emergent artificial life models of supple living-system dynamics could be adapted to model the supple mind, potentially refashioning functionalism in philosophy of mind. |
Abstract
The dynamical patterns in mental phenomena have a characteristic suppleness--a looseness or softness that persistently resists precise formulation--which apparently underlies the frame problem of artificial intelligence. This suppleness also undermines contemporary philosophical functionalist attempts to define mental capacities. Living systems display an analogous from of supple dynamics. However, the supple dynamics of living systems have been captured in recent artificial life models, due to the emergent architecture of those models. This suggests that analogous emergent models might be able to explain supple dynamics of mental phenomena. These emergent models of the supple mind, if successful, would refashion the nature of contemporary functionalism in the philosophy of mind.