Prof. David Papineau
'The Mind is just the Brain'
Date: March 25th, 2022
Abstract: During the twentieth century a simple logical argument persuaded most scientists and philosophers of the materialist view that the mind is nothing more than the brain. Prof. Papineau shall (1) explain this argument, (2) show that its emergence in the twentieth century was due to scientific developments, not mere intellectual fashion, and (3) argue that the so-called “hard problem of consciousness” provides no reason to reject materialism.​
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Bio: David Papineau is a professor of Philosophy of Mind at King's College, London. With a luminary career in Philosophy, he has established expertise in causation, mental representation and consciousness. He writes widely on epistemology, metaphysics, and the philosophy of science and mind, and has authored several books which include: Reality and Representation (1987), Thinking about Consciousness (2002), and The Metaphysics of Sensory Experience (2021). His notable contributions have bestowed upon him several honors such as the Presidency of the Mind Association in 2009 and the Aristotelian Society in 2014. He has the skill of targeting the most controversial, pressing theoretical issues in philosophy and answering them in the most realistic, relatable manner. You can find his online posts and blogs on his website.
Abstract: The talk will focus on the philosophical issue of mind-body problem and provide criticisms against a physicalist view of reality. For those interested in preparing, the talk will cover much of the concepts discussed in these videos: https://www.essentiafoundation.org/analytic-idealism-course/
Bernardo Kastrup is the executive director of Essentia Foundation. His work has been leading the modern renaissance of metaphysical idealism, the notion that reality is essentially mental. He has a Ph.D. in philosophy (ontology, philosophy of mind) and another Ph.D. in computer engineering (reconfigurable computing, artificial intelligence). As a scientist, Bernardo has worked for the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and the Philips Research Laboratories (where the 'Casimir Effect' of Quantum Field Theory was discovered). Formulated in detail in many academic papers and books, his ideas have been featured on Scientific American, the Institute of Art and Ideas, the Blog of the American Philosophical Association and Big Think, among others. Bernardo's most recent book is The Idea of the World: A multi-disciplinary argument for the mental nature of reality. For more information, freely downloadable papers, videos, etc., please visit www.bernardokastrup.com.
Prof. Bernardo Kastrup
'The neuroscientific Evidence Against Physicalism'
Date: September 9, 2021 05:30 PM- 06:30 PM (IST)