Rational Powers in Action III: Instrumental Rationality and Indeterminate Ends.

Let me start with a bit more detail on the structure of the Extended Theory of Rationality (ETR). Suppose I am intentionally baking a cake.  According to ETR, this action is an end that I am pursuing, and thus the principle of instrumental reasoning enjoins me to pursue sufficient means. …

Rational Powers in Action II: Classical Vs Contemporary Conceptions Of Instrumental Rationality

Kant thought there was a single principle of instrumental rationality, the hypothetical imperative, that connected the pursuit (“willing”) of ends and the pursuit of means. My admittedly impressionistic view of the history of philosophy is that Kant was far from unusual on that point; it is taken for granted that …

Rational Powers in Action I: Outline of a theory of instrumental rationality

Rational Powers in Action defends a theory of instrumental rationality that departs radically from most contemporary treatments of this topic (or so I would like to think, given my penchant for rebellion).  In a nutshell, the theory I propose, The Extended Theory of Rationality (or ETR for short) takes intentional action to be the primary category …

CFA: Philosophy and Neuroscience at the Gulf IV

MARK YOUR CALENDARS/FIRST CALL FOR ABSTRACTS Philosophy and Neuroscience at the Gulf IV: Fourth Annual Meeting of the Deep South Philosophy and Neuroscience WorkgroupTo be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Alabama Philosophical Society.Co-organized by John Bickle (Mississippi State University and University of Mississippi Medical Center) and …

Cognitive Science of Philosophy Symposium: Philosophy of Perception in the Laboratory

Welcome to the Brains Blog’s Symposium series on the Cognitive Science of Philosophy! The aim of the series is to examine the use of methods from the cognitive sciences to generate philosophical insight. Each symposium is comprised of two parts. In the target post, a practitioner describes their use of …

Cameron Buckner will livestream “Understanding Adversarial Examples Requires A Theory Of Artifacts For Deep Learning” on April 16

We are excited about the next Neural Mechanisms webinar this Friday. As always, it is free. You can find information about how and when to join the webinar below or at the Neural Mechanisms website—where you can also join sign up for the mailing list that notifies people about upcoming …

Cognitive Science of Philosophy Symposium: Metaethics and Experimental Philosophy

Welcome to the Brains Blog’s Symposium series on the Cognitive Science of Philosophy! The aim of the series is to examine the use of methods from the cognitive sciences to generate philosophical insight. Each symposium is comprised of two parts. In the target post, a practitioner describes their use of …

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