The Swiss knife theory is a controversial but curious explanation of how the mind works. Under this modular approach, would our brain be formed by?Highly specialized applications to effectively solve very specific problems, in this way our mind would be a set of specific areas very similar to a versatile knife.
First, it should be mentioned that this perspective, as well as the concept of modularity to explain perceptual and cognitive processes, usually receive many criticisms from neuroscience, however, a small number of evolutionary psychologists continue to defend this unique proposed perspective. in 1922 by anthropologist John Toody and psychologist Leda Cosmides.
- This idea had already appeared in the philosophical community in the 1980s.
- It was Jerry A.
- Fodor.
- One of the most important philosophers of the mind.
- Who researched throughout his life the mysteries of the structure of human cognition.
- Specialist in linguistics.
- Logic.
- Semiotics.
- Psychology.
- Computer science and artificial intelligence.
In addition, he is owed, for example, the fundamentals of cognitive science itself and the specificity of the philosophy of psychology. Thus, one of his most striking and striking works was undoubtedly The Modularity of the Mind, published in 1983. This perspective, while rejected by many experts, remains a current of great self-interest. To unite attempts to understand the mystery that surrounds mental processes.
? We’ve got a lot to do. What our cognitive science has done so far is, for the most part, to shed a small ray of light on the great darkness that exists in terms of understanding the mind. -Jerry A. Fodor-
In Swiss knife theory, there is a first aspect that we all agree with. Fodor himself has indicated that the brain, as an observable physical entity, can be better studied through technological advances, however, there is a time when the study of the mind enters another, more abstract and imprecise level, at which technology loses its value.
Plato and Aristotle, in their time, have already tried to give an explanation, such as Descartes and John Locke, so, around the 1980s, this current, which took hold between philosophy and psychology, was suddenly seen in Noam Chomsky’s legacy and cryptography. -mathematician Alan Turing a unique way to define and explain our cognitive processes.
Next, we will examine the principles that define the Swiss knife theory.
In the late 1950s, linguist and philosopher Noam Chomsky began defending one of his best-known theories: language is not a learned behavior, but an innate functional mental faculty, a premise that was one of the pillars that later inspired Dr. Fodor.
Jerry A. Fodor published his theories in the book The Modularity of the Mind (1983). Subsequently, Drs. Tooby and Cosmides presented the Swiss knife theory based on Fodor’s work. Where are we now? This approach that understands the mind as?Is that feasible?
As noted above, this approach remains controversial; however, there are many personalities from the scientific field who defend the psychology of the faculties raised by Fodor, a position in this open debate is defended by Nancy Kanwisher, professor and researcher of the Department. Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
One of his best-known TED lectures was held in 2014 to explain the validity of Swiss knife theory. In addition, there are also several scientific studies that support this idea and are regularly published in the scientific journal Journal of Neuroscience.
One aspect Dr. Kanwisher noticed through MRI was that there are many areas of the brain that do not communicate with each other; Working in isolation This means that, for example, people with prosopagnosia can see perfectly and, at the same time, cannot recognize people.
They can see their children, but in many cases they don’t recognize them when they pick them up from school. Therefore, there are many specialized areas of the brain that function as “modules”. Examples are specific regions that deal with colors, shapes, movement, speech, and so on.
Many see modular theory or Swiss knife theory as a very simplistic, Darwinian-style approach, in which, for example, the idea of natural selection is not excluded.
This perspective includes, for example, that our behaviors are almost like programs that we acquire as we move forward as a species, so each process, each function develops and specializes autonomously and separately from the others.
Studies, such as the one published in the journal PLOS Biology, show the risk of adopting this type of modular approach to human cognition, so we cannot talk about the brain as a fragmented entity, which does not correspond to the metaphor of the mobile. phone, to which we add apps based on our daily needs. It’s more complex than that.
While it is true that there are areas of the brain that do not communicate with others, it is not true that the mind works in different specialized and separate sectors. The brain is designed to share information and work unitarily, all domains are interconnected and share information at all times.
Our reasoning, for example, is far from modular, and it is holistic. We use various concepts, inferences, processes, inductions, etc. Therefore, the brain and cognitive processes cannot be understood under the classic metaphor of a computer. We are much more complex, fascinating and unpredictable?