The Building Blocks of Thought: A Rationalist Account of the Origins of Concepts

Description: The Building Blocks of Thought by Stephen Laurence, Eric Margolis This is a broad and authoritative study of a central topic in the study of the mind: the origins of concepts. The authors a comprehensive rethinking of the foundations of the debate between rationalists and empiricists. They draw on a wealth of data across the cognitive sciences to make the case for a rationalist account, concept nativism. FORMAT Paperback CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read on Oxford Academic and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations.This is a broad and authoritative study of one of the central topics in the study of the mind: the origins of concepts. The authors survey the debate between rationalists and empiricists which stretches back to the very beginningsof philosophy, and has been at the centre of some of the most exciting research in cognitive science. Many have charged that the debate is riddled with confusion or that rationalist approaches, inparticular, are deeply problematic. The Building Blocks of Thought offers a comprehensive rethinking of the foundations of this debate, showing that these negative appraisals are based on misunderstandings. Stephen Laurence and Eric Margolis argue that the debate should be understood to concern the nature of the unlearned psychological traits that provide the foundation for learning all concepts. They go on to argue for a version of concept nativism according to which there is arationalist account of the origins of many concepts across many different conceptual domains. This rationalist view is developed around seven distinct arguments, drawing on a wealth of data across the cognitivesciences, which are shown to come together to form a unified large-scale argument to the best explanation for a rationalist account of the origins of concepts. Rounding out the case for concept nativism, the book contrasts this view with the most important and influential empiricist views, as well as alternative rationalist views, including Fodors infamous radical concept nativism and his claim that concept learning is impossible. The Building Blocks of Thought argues for the enormousimportance of learning and culture, showing how a thoroughly rationalist approach facilitates and enhances cultural learning and provides the foundations for the best overall account of the origins ofconcepts. Author Biography Stephen Laurence is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Sheffield. He received his PhD in Philosophy at Rutgers University and taught at the University of Manchester, Hampshire College, the London School of Economics, and the University of Hull. He is Director of the Hang Seng Centre for Cognitive Studies and directed the AHRC Innateness and the Structure of the Mind Project and the AHRC Culture and the Mind Project. He is co-editor of The ConceptualMind and Concepts: Core Readings (both The MIT Press) among other books, and has published numerous articles in both philosophical and scientific journals. Eric Margolis is Professor of Philosophy at theUniversity of British Columbia. He received his PhD in Philosophy at Rutgers University and taught at Rice University and the University of Wisconsin prior to his appointment at the University of British Columbia. He has received research funding from The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, The Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies, and Canadas Social Science and Humanities Research Council. He is co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Cognitive Science (OUP, 2012),and The Conceptual Mind (The MIT Press), among other books, and has published extensively in philosophical journals. Table of Contents 1: Introduction: Whatever Happened to the Debate Over Innate Ideas?PART I: The Rationalism-Empiricism Debate2: What the Rationalism-Empiricism Debate is Really About3: Why the Rationalism-Empiricism Debate Isnt the Nature-Nurture Debate4: The Viability of Rationalism5: Abstraction and the Allure of Illusory Explanation6: Concepts, Innateness, and Why Concept Nativism is about More Than Just Innate Concepts7: Conclusion to Part IPART II: Seven Arguments for Concept Nativism8: The Argument from Early Development (1)9: The Argument from Early Development (2)10: The Argument from Animals11: The Argument from Universality12: The Argument from Initial Representational Access13: The Argument from Neural Wiring14: The Argument from Prepared Learning15: The Argument from Cognitive and Behavioural Quirks16: Conclusion to Part IIPART III. Alternative Empiricist Perspectives17: Methodological Empiricism18: Neo-Associationism19: Artificial Neural Networks: From Connectionism to Deep Learning20: Neuroconstructivism21: Perceptual Meaning Analysis22: Embodied Cognition23: Conclusion to Part IIIPART IV. Fodorian Concept Nativism24: The Evolution of Fodors Case Against Concept Learning25: Not All Concepts Are Innate26: Fodors Biological Account of Concept AcquisitionDLand the Importance of Cultural Learning27: Conclusion to Part IV28: Coda: Innate Ideas Revisited Details ISBN0192898922 Author Eric Margolis Publisher Oxford University Press Year 2024 ISBN-13 9780192898920 Format Paperback Publication Date 2024-08-22 Imprint Oxford University Press Subtitle A Rationalist Account of the Origins of Concepts Place of Publication Oxford Country of Publication United Kingdom UK Release Date 2024-08-22 AU Release Date 2024-09-04 Audience Tertiary & Higher Education Illustrations 5 colour and 16 black-and-white illustrations ISBN-10 0192898922 DEWEY 128.3 Pages 704 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! 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