Why is conversation so easy? Abstract Traditional accounts of language processing suggest that monologue – presenting and listening to speeches – should be more straightforward than dialogue – holding a conversation. This is clearly not the case. We argue that conversation is easy because of an interactive processing mechanism that leads to the alignment of Continue reading Why Is Conversation So Easy? Simon Garrod and Martin J. Pickering
Over many years of elementary school, high school, and even college and graduate school, we’re never explicitly taught to think outside the brain; we’re not shown how to employ our bodies and spaces and relationships in the service of intelligent thought. Yet this instruction is available if we know where to look; our teachers are Continue reading The Extended Mind: the Power of Thinking Outside the Brain by Annie Murphy Paul (2021)
This is an external resource such as an article, blog. Below is a summary of the key points from the resource, along with a link to the complete article. The full article can be accessed via the link if you would like to read the content in its entirety. Article: Embodied Cognition by Stanford Encyclopedia Continue reading Embodied Cognition Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2021)
We know that the brain processes information, responds to the world, and produces extraordinarily complex behaviour. But why should any of this activity be accompanied by subjective experience? Why should seeing red, hearing music, or feeling pain actually feel like anything? This is the mystery at the heart of consciousness, and despite considerable scientific and philosophical progress, we … Continue reading The Nature of Consciousness The mystery of the mind
Reasoning is usually treated as a tool for forming sound beliefs and decisions. Yet research on cognitive bias suggests our individual reasoning is often unreliable and shaped by hidden distortions. Social reasoning offers an alternative: we think better together, testing ideas through dialogue and shared critique rather than alone. Continue reading The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason We did not evolve to reason individually but to reason socially
Cognition is a complex process that involves not only our brains but also our bodies, environments, and actions. This is the idea behind 4E cognition, which encompasses the four factors that shape cognition: embodiment, embeddedness, extension, and enaction. It’s common for us to think that all our cognitive processes occur solely in our minds or brains, but this is a limited and potentially … Continue reading Understanding 4E Cognition The multidimensional nature of cognition
Understanding 4E Cognition Mirror Neurons Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close Cognition is a complex process that involves not just our brain but also our physical body, environment, and actions. This is the idea behind 4E cognition, Continue reading Beyond the Brain The multidimensional nature of cognition
Interbrain synchrony occurs when aspects of neural activity become aligned between people during social interaction. It has been observed during conversation, joint attention, cooperation and other shared activities. The research offers intriguing evidence that interacting brains are not operating entirely independently, although what this synchrony means and what causes it are still being … Continue reading Interbrain Synchrony When neural activities align between people during social interactions
We humans are extraordinarily complex, shaped by billions of years of evolution. Understanding human systems is challenging because they differ from natural or technical systems. Thinkers such as Ralph Stacey and Dave Snowden have developed methods to make sense of this complexity, highlighting how human interactions shape unpredictable and adaptive social systems. Continue reading We Humans Are Complex Human socio-technical systems are complex
Many of us find it difficult to give a speech, and it is not always easy to listen to one, but we are all pretty good at holding a conversation. Why is this? Surely, delivering a monologue or listening to one should be more natural than dialogue? Continue reading Our Brains Are Designed for Conversation That is why we find conversation so easy
