The Physics of ‘As If’ Karl Friston11 Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University of College London Milk production at a dairy farm was low, so the farmer wrote to the local university, asking for help. A multidisciplinary team of professors was assembled, headed by a theoretical physicist, and two weeks …
The Idealized Mind (2025) distinguishes between computational modeling, where computational models are used to study target systems, and the additional practice of showing that neural systems literally perform computations. The former is a legitimate scientific practice. The latter is problematic. Because computational neuroscientists take neural systems to be computational systems, …
COMMENTS ON THE IDEALIZED MIND, BY MICHAEL D. KIRCHHOFFCorey J. Maley Purdue University cjmaley@purdue.edu Michael Kirchhoff’s book The Idealized Mind has many original and thought-provoking ideas, touching on a number of subjects relevant to contemporary discussions in the theory and philosophy of cognitive science. Here, I will focus my comments …
The Idealized Mind (2025) argues that discussion about neural representation and neural computation is based on idealized models. This has serious implications for defending realism about neural representation and neural computation. Egan is right to think that my critique of computational models applies more widely than to her own account …
Some Physical Systems (Literally) ComputeFrances Egan Rutgers University In his ambitious new book, Michael Kirchhoff argues that computational models cannot be literally true of the real-world systems they purport to describe. In chapter 6 he aims his critique at my account of computational models (Egan 2018, 2020), but, as I understand it, the critique …
The Idealized Mind (2025) examines how idealized models are used to interpret the nature and function of the mind and brain, whilst defending a version of scientific realism. Drayson presents several challenges to this project. She says that The Idealized Mind claims that “some scientific theories are neither true nor …
Challenging Kirchhoff on the Semantics of Models and TheoriesZoe DraysonThe bold claim at the heart of Kirchhoff’s (2025) The Idealized Mind is that some scientific theories are neither true nor false. This makes Kirchhoff one of the very few philosophers since the logical empiricists to deny semantic realism: the view …
