The Nature Of Perception

Author : John Foster
Publisher : Clarendon Press
Page : 298 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2000-03-09
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780191519260

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The Nature of Perception by John Foster Pdf

John Foster presents a penetrating investigation of the question: what is it to perceive a physical object? Is perceptual contact with a physical object, he asks, something fundamental, or does it break down into further factors? If the latter, what are these factors, and how do they combine to secure the contact? For most of the book, Foster addresses these questions in the framework of a realist view of the physical world. But the arguments which thereby unfold - arguments which undermine direct realism and establish a version of the sense-datum theory - lead to the conclusion that we do not perceive physical objects at all. The only way to avoid this conclusion is by abandoning physical realism for a form of idealism, and this is the option which Foster finally embraces. The Nature of Perception makes a valuable contribution to the ongoing debate: it sheds light on the traditional issues, and breathes new life into positions which most current philosophers assume to be dead.

Author : Ian Convery,Peter Davis
Publisher : Heritage Matters
Page : 332 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2016
Category : Nature
ISBN : 1783271051

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Changing Perceptions of Nature by Ian Convery,Peter Davis Pdf

Essays investigating the idea of natural heritage and the ways in which it has changed over time.

Author : Alva Noë,Evan Thompson
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 644 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2002-10-25
Category : Psychology
ISBN : 0262640473

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Vision and Mind by Alva Noë,Evan Thompson Pdf

The philosophy of perception is a microcosm of the metaphysics of mind. Its central problems—What is perception? What is the nature of perceptual consciousness? How can one fit an account of perceptual experience into a broader account of the nature of the mind and the world?—are at the heart of metaphysics. Rather than try to cover all of the many strands in the philosophy of perception, this book focuses on a particular orthodoxy about the nature of visual perception. The central problem for visual science has been to explain how the brain bridges the gap between what is given to the visual system and what is actually experienced by the perceiver. The orthodox view of perception is that it is a process whereby the brain, or a dedicated subsystem of the brain, builds up representations of relevant figures of the environment on the basis of information encoded by the sensory receptors. Most adherents of the orthodox view also believe that for every conscious perceptual state of the subject, there is a particular set of neurons whose activities are sufficient for the occurrence of that state. Some of the essays in this book defend the orthodoxy; most criticize it; and some propose alternatives to it. Many of the essays are classics. Contributors G.E.M. Anscombe, Dana Ballard, Daniel Dennett, Fred Dretske, Jerry Fodor, H.P. Grice, David Marr, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Zenon Pylyshyn, Paul Snowdon, and P.F. Strawson

Author : Athanassios Raftopoulos
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 447 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2009-07-17
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780262258418

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Cognition and Perception by Athanassios Raftopoulos Pdf

An argument that there are perceptual mechanisms that retrieve information in cognitively and conceptually unmediated ways and that this sheds light on various philosophical issues. In Cognition and Perception, Athanassios Raftopoulos discusses the cognitive penetrability of perception and claims that there is a part of visual processes (which he calls “perception”) that results in representational states with nonconceptual content; that is, a part that retrieves information from visual scenes in conceptually unmediated, “bottom-up,” theory-neutral ways. Raftopoulos applies this insight to problems in philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, and epistemology, and examines how we access the external world through our perception as well as what we can know of that world. To show that there is a theory-neutral part of existence, Raftopoulos turns to cognitive science and argues that there is substantial scientific evidence. He then claims that perception induces representational states with nonconceptual content and examines the nature of the nonconceptual content. The nonconceptual information retrieved, he argues, does not allow the identification or recognition of an object but only its individuation as a discrete persistent object with certain spatiotemporal properties and other features. Object individuation, however, suffices to determine the referents of perceptual demonstratives. Raftopoulos defends his account in the context of current discussions on the issue of the theory-ladenness of perception (namely the Fodor-Churchland debate), and then discusses the repercussions of his thesis for problems in the philosophy of science. Finally, Raftopoulos claims that there is a minimal form of realism that is defensible. This minimal realism holds that objects, their spatiotemporal properties, and such features as shape, orientation, and motion are real, mind-independent properties in the world.

Author : Peter Kinane
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 70 pages
File Size : 53,5 Mb
Release : 1993
Category : Metaphysics
ISBN : LCCN:93057542

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Perception by Peter Kinane Pdf

Author : William Fish
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 366 pages
File Size : 47,6 Mb
Release : 2010-05-07
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781135838546

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Philosophy of Perception by William Fish Pdf

The philosophy of perception investigates the nature of our sensory experiences and their relation to reality. Raising questions about the conscious character of perceptual experiences, how they enable us to acquire knowledge of the world in which we live, and what exactly it is we are aware of when we hallucinate or dream, the philosophy of perception is a growing area of interest in metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of mind. William Fish’s Philosophy of Perception introduces the subject thematically, setting out the major theories of perception together with their motivations and attendant problems. While providing historical background to debates in the field, this comprehensive overview focuses on recent presentations and defenses of the different theories, and looks beyond visual perception to take into account the role of other senses. Topics covered include: the phenomenal principle perception and hallucination perception and content sense-data, adverbialism and idealism disjunctivism and relationalism intentionalism and combined theories the nature of content veridicality perception and empirical science non-visual perception. With summaries and suggested further reading at the end of each chapter, this is an ideal introduction to the philosophy of perception.

Author : Beau Lotto
Publisher : Hachette UK
Page : 352 pages
File Size : 54,6 Mb
Release : 2017-04-25
Category : Science
ISBN : 9780316300179

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Deviate by Beau Lotto Pdf

Beau Lotto, the world-renowned neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and two-time TED speaker, takes us on a tour of how we perceive the world, and how disrupting it leads us to create and innovate. Perception is the foundation of human experience, but few of us understand why we see what we do, much less how. By revealing the startling truths about the brain and its perceptions, Beau Lotto shows that the next big innovation is not a new technology: it is a new way of seeing. In his first major book, Lotto draws on over two decades of pioneering research to explain that our brain didn't evolve to see the world accurately. It can't! Visually stunning, with entertaining illustrations and optical illusions throughout, and with clear and comprehensive explanations of the science behind how our perceptions operate, Deviate will revolutionize the way you see yourself, others and the world. With this new understanding of how the brain functions, Deviate is not just an illuminating account of the neuroscience of thought, behavior, and creativity: it is a call to action, enlisting readers in their own journey of self-discovery.

Author : Paul Coates
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 261 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2007-09-12
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781134453153

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The Metaphysics of Perception by Paul Coates Pdf

This book is an important study in the philosophy of the mind; drawing on the work of philosopher Wilfrid Sellars and the theory of critical realism to develop a novel argument for understanding perception and metaphysics.

Author : Alva Noë
Publisher : MIT Press
Page : 291 pages
File Size : 44,5 Mb
Release : 2006-01-20
Category : Psychology
ISBN : 9780262640633

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Action in Perception by Alva Noë Pdf

"Perception is not something that happens to us, or in us," writes Alva Noë. "It is something we do." In Action in Perception, Noë argues that perception and perceptual consciousness depend on capacities for action and thought—that perception is a kind of thoughtful activity. Touch, not vision, should be our model for perception. Perception is not a process in the brain, but a kind of skillful activity of the body as a whole. We enact our perceptual experience. To perceive, according to this enactive approach to perception, is not merely to have sensations; it is to have sensations that we understand. In Action in Perception, Noë investigates the forms this understanding can take. He begins by arguing, on both phenomenological and empirical grounds, that the content of perception is not like the content of a picture; the world is not given to consciousness all at once but is gained gradually by active inquiry and exploration. Noë then argues that perceptual experience acquires content thanks to our possession and exercise of practical bodily knowledge, and examines, among other topics, the problems posed by spatial content and the experience of color. He considers the perspectival aspect of the representational content of experience and assesses the place of thought and understanding in experience. Finally, he explores the implications of the enactive approach for our understanding of the neuroscience of perception.

Author : J. Christopher Maloney
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 352 pages
File Size : 41,6 Mb
Release : 2018-06-15
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780190854775

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What It Is Like To Perceive by J. Christopher Maloney Pdf

Naturalistic cognitive science, when realistically rendered, rightly maintains that to think is to deploy contentful mental representations. Accordingly, conscious perception, memory, and anticipation are forms of cognition that, despite their introspectively manifest differences, may coincide in content. Sometimes we remember what we saw; other times we predict what we will see. Why, then, does what it is like consciously to perceive, differ so dramatically from what it is like merely to recall or anticipate the same? Why, if thought is just representation, does the phenomenal character of seeing a sunset differ so stunningly from the tepid character of recollecting or predicting the sun's descent? J. Christopher Maloney argues that, unlike other cognitive modes, perception is in fact immediate, direct acquaintance with the object of thought. Although all mental representations carry content, the vehicles of perceptual representation are uniquely composed of the very objects represented. To perceive the setting sun is to use the sun and its properties to cast a peculiar cognitive vehicle of demonstrative representation. This vehicle's embedded referential term is identical with, and demonstrates, the sun itself. And the vehicle's self-attributive demonstrative predicate is itself forged from a property of that same remote star. So, in this sense, the perceiving mind is an extended mind. Perception is unbrokered cognition of what is real, exactly as it really is. Maloney's theory of perception will be of great interest in the philosophy of mind and cognitive science.

Author : Barry Maund
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 238 pages
File Size : 51,7 Mb
Release : 2014-12-18
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781317489535

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Perception by Barry Maund Pdf

The philosophical issues raised by perception make it one of the central topics in the philosophical tradition. Debate about the nature of perceptual knowledge and the objects of perception comprises a thread that runs through the history of philosophy. In some historical periods the major issues have been predominantly epistemological and related to scepticism, but an adequate understanding of perception is important more widely, especially for metaphysics and the philosophy of mind. For this reason Barry Maund provides an account of the major issues in the philosophy of perception that highlights the importance of a good theory of perception in a range of philosophical fields, while also seeking to be sensitive to the historical dimension of the subject. The work presents chapters on forms of natural realism; theories of perceptual experience; representationalism; the argument from illusion; phenomenological senses; types of perceptual content; the representationalist/intentionalist thesis; and adverbialist accounts of perceptual experience. The ideas of, among others, Austin, Dretske, Heidegger, Millikan, Putnam and Robinson are considered and the reader is given a philosophical framework within which to consider the issues.

Author : D. W. Hamlyn
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 232 pages
File Size : 47,8 Mb
Release : 1961
Category : Perception
ISBN : UOM:39015005724375

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Sensation and Perception by D. W. Hamlyn Pdf

Author : Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Publisher : Motilal Banarsidass Publishe
Page : 494 pages
File Size : 51,6 Mb
Release : 1996
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 8120813464

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Phenomenology of Perception by Maurice Merleau-Ponty Pdf

Buddhist philosophy of Anicca (impermanence), Dukkha (suffering), and

Author : Anonim
Publisher : Ardent Media
Page : 28 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2024-07-02
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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The Nature and Importance of Individual Differences in Perception by Anonim Pdf

Author : D.L.C. Maclachlan
Publisher : McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
Page : 232 pages
File Size : 45,7 Mb
Release : 2013-04-01
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780773588424

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The Enigma of Perception by D.L.C. Maclachlan Pdf

How do we acquire knowledge through a sensory input from our environment? In The Enigma of Perception, D.L.C. Maclachlan revives the traditional causal representative theory of perception which dominated philosophical thinking for hundreds of years by revealing the important element of truth the theory contained. The traditional theory was not a complete explanation of perception, because it presupposed a causal system including both the physical objects and the subjective experiences. The pattern of inference from sensations to external objects, which lies at its heart, is nevertheless legitimate, because the assumptions on which it depends are generally recognized as true. The emerging enigma is how to explain this original knowledge of the world on which the traditional theory depends. The key idea is that sense experience is constructed as a response to sensory input - an act whose purpose is to represent a reality beyond the cognitive subject. The Enigma of Perception develops original ideas to explain this process in detail, with help from numerous philosophers from John Locke to David Chalmers.