The action-based brain: a provocation to philosophy, robotics and the cognitive sciences

我们经常认为我们的眼睛能提供我们周围世界的详细图像，但这是一个错误。相反，只要我们想知道场景的某个部分的细节，我们的眼睛就会朝它弹过去，细节就会显露出来。在这个例子中，感知依赖于世界，运动系统和内部表征，使世界充当信息的“存储”，在需要时总是可以检索到。“具身认知”的哲学理论强调了思维和运动系统之间的这种联系。然而，这种分析所缺乏的是一个确定所提议的实现的坚实的神经和计算基础。通过详细研究在神经科学社区中出现的具体版本的体现，并将其暴露于哲学家的关键工具，我们的目标是评估一个特定提议的范围和局限性，并就这些关于认知本质的一般问题，为神经科学、机器人和哲学应该如何相互作用得出更广泛的教训。基于数学家、工程师、机器人专家、心理学家、神经科学家和哲学家的参与，这个网络本质上是多学科的，每个人都有不同的、互补的投入。该项目以《阅读中的哲学》为基础，由一位哲学家领导，已经包括了心灵哲学和具身认知领域的主要国际专家。神经科学和机器人领域的国际专家也同意参加讨论，我们将逐步扩大小组。网络成员之间的互动将通过以下方式进行：(i)在wiki页面上进行讨论，随着辩论的发展，将引入新的页面集；（二）集中讨论具体、有争议领域的联合视频会议；（三）在12个月期间即将结束时举行为期两天的会议，由神经科学、心灵哲学和认知机器人方面的国际专家参加。我们将主要通过一篇《大脑与行为科学》的文章来传播这个网络的结果。这是一个在哲学界和神经科学界都有很高影响力的论坛。我们还将在神经科学、工程和哲学期刊上发表更多的专业文章。到今年年底，我们将开发一个面向公众的维基门户，并鼓励学术界以外的更广泛的受众参与进来。在这一点上，我们将使用ResearchGate等设施来接触更广泛的研究人员群体，并使用Twitter等社交媒体来宣传学术界内外的讨论。

We often assume that our eyes deliver a detailed image of the world around us, but this is a mistake. Instead, as soon as we want to know the detail in a part of the scene, our eyes flick towards it and the detail is revealed. In this example, perception depends on the world, the motor system and an internal representation that enables the world to act as a 'store' of information that is always retrievable when required. Philosophical theories of 'embodied cognition' emphasise this link between the mind and the motor system. What this analysis lacks, however, is a firm neural and computational grounding specifying the proposed implementation. By looking in detail at a specific version of embodiment that has arisen within the neuroscience community and by exposing it to the critical tools of philosophers, we aim to assess the scope and limits of one particular proposal, and also to draw broader lessons for how neuroscience, robotics and philosophy ought to interact, with respect to these general questions about the nature of cognition. The network will be inherently multidisciplinary, based on the involvement of mathematicians, engineers, roboticists, psychologists, neuroscientists and philosophers, each with different, complementary inputs. The project is based in Philosophy in Reading, led by a philosopher and already includes key international experts in philosophy of mind and embodied cognition. International experts in neuroscience and robotics have also agreed to take part in the discussion and we will extend the group progressively.The interactions between members of the network will take place through (i) discussion on a wiki page, with new sets of pages being introduced as the debate develops; (ii) joint video conference meetings focused on specific, contentious areas and (iii) a two day conference towards the end of the 12 month period involving international experts in neuroscience, philosophy of mind and cognitive robotics.We will disseminate the results of the network primarily through a Brain and Behavioral Sciences article. This is a forum with high impact in both the philosophical and neuroscience communities. We will also publish more specialist articles in journals for neuroscience, engineering and philosophy. By the end of the year, we will develop a more public-facing portal to the wiki and encourage engagement with a broader audience outside academia. At this point we will use facilities such as ResearchGate to reach a wider group of researchers and social media such as Twitter to advertise the discussion within and beyond the academic community.