What is Cognitive Science?

[@sarthaksood2819]

this man's whole channel if consumed in chronological order holds the value of a day long bootcamp on cognitive science.

[@pietsteeno]

This was a great introduction to cognitive science. A passionate instructor, a clear structure, great examples and a finetuned pragmatic overall approach. You are very talented, please keep creating videos from this level!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks so much! I plan to continue uploading videos from this lecture series - as soon as I find some time!

[@pietsteeno]

@@RYANRHODES-cogsci That's awesome. Its been a long way for me to find a solution for describing the key components of a creative process without using well known terms as problem solving, association, originality, inspiration etc. I believe that new knowledge can truly rise from new words that are unique for the intuitions every researcher has. Knowing how mental representations work helps me understand why we choose and use words a little better.

[@larainelieberman9573]

He sounds like a professor very very nice

[@juliannamatteis8538]

He doesn’t sound like a prof- he actually makes sense and makes it tangible!

[@peijinhan4160]

He's a professor at Rutgers University!

[@holdenfees4985]

Future CogSci major here. After introducing the major to my high school senior class and explaining the diverse career paths, my brother and I convinced 5 kids to switch to/ apply for CogSci. Including 1 Yale student :). It is actually such an underrated major. Now my brother and I are both going to be studying it at UCB in the fall...

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

That's awesome! Congrats!

[@varshinivijayvlogs]

Hi Holden, does ucb have masters in CogSci ?

[@justjaloe]

what career path are deciding on? im looking to do like ui/ux and also wondering if it is useful for marketing jobs.

[@skillcode2376]

Currently studying Mathematics and Informatics Applied to Cognitive Science and your videos are helping me a lot. I would love to see how you would explain sci cog through the lenses of philosophy and psychology . Keep up with the good work!

[@barskaracadag3923]

hi man, where do you study?

[@mutabazimichael8404]

as a person who have read descartes i am very interested in this topic and your video got me hooked

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Awesome!

[@mececemusic3814]

I came here from listening to this sociopath girl that was talking about cognitive empathy and I am really happy I found your lecture. This is so interesting. You sir gave another student. I liked and subscribed. Thank you!

[@MrFizzFizz]

This was just phenomenal. I am applying to Ph. D programs in Clinical Psychology now and am teaching my first classes next spring. Different content but you have set the standard for the type of online lectures I hope to create. Appreciate the videos, will reach out by e-mail!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks! That means a lot. Looking forward to hearing from you!

[@spainloveres]

This video is great! You're so passionate about cognitive science, it's inspiring! My thesis will be most probably connected with cognitive semiotics and cognitive education, and I kinda lack knowledge on the cognitive part in both, so I guess I will be watching all of your videos in the next couple of weeks😉 Also, special thanks for the references!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks, glad you like it! Tell me more about cognitive semiotics - I have never heard of that!

[@juliannamatteis8538]

You are saving my mind and my CogSci grade!!! Thank you!!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

I'm glad it helped!

[@Tom-sp3gy]

Fantastic presentation!

[@TJMKRK]

I promess to watch and like all your videos. I support you.

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thank you!

[@BeyondBorders00]

Awesome video Ryan. Really nicely done. Brilliant

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks!

[@dianachang8154]

So clear! Thank you so much for the video!

[@badformatuk]

Love your stuff mate, i'm learning so much.

[@Kirosta]

I love you man, please keep on it.

[@siriboonkotchaseth297]

Hi Ryan. I am your follower.

[@saibharath5510]

This is soo good at creating excitement and curiosity Great job!!! I m curios

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thank you! Generating curiosity is my goal

[@sinfinite7516]

Wow the editing of this video was great

[@lucasgreenwell8363]

Awesome video! Thanks for making

[@ezequieldurand-lopez556]

Clear and passionate!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thank you!

[@mouadaazi4973]

Excellent intro to cog science!! Keep up

[@Turdburger97]

Excellent video! Thanks so much!

[@prakbisht]

I studied cognitive science to understand the human mind but I found neuro science the main hindrance in understanding it

[@justjaloe]

what are some potential career paths for this? im interested in business, technology, as well as design.

[@iranjackheelson]

In the multiple realizability section, I'm not sure whether you're equating mental states to function, but I think that'd not be quite accurate. One can accept a mental state (which I view as something like the pure subjective sensation, qualia of being the physical being) having a complete 1:1 correspondence to a physical state yet reject that the functional property of that mental state is the physical state. In Putnam's thesis you've laid out, "mental kind" sounded more like a functional property of different mental states (i.e. some category we decided to impose on different mental states), and on that assumption it totally made sense in the thesis conclusion that "mental kind" ≠ "physical state", but then you seemed to have followed that up using "mental state" and "mental kind" interchangeably, pointing out how neuroscience presupposes "mental state"="physical state" (thus seems to runs against the thesis). Then you seemed to imply that it isn't an issue because neuroscience would reject the first premise of the realizability thesis. But I think the better way to see it -- if my interpretation of "mental kind" is correct -- is that neuroscience would have no issues wholly accepting the multiple realizability thesis. After all, the thesis is just saying that mental kind (i.e. functional property of a category of different mental states) ≠ physical states, but I don't see how this in any way hinders what neuroscience is trying to achieve, which is to identify physical states that satisfies such functional property. I don't see why they need them to be the same and why that even matters. Are we in disagreement here?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

I don't think we're in disagreement! This is fundamentally a question of how you define "mental state". If you define a mental state as identical to a physical brain state, and then introduce a higher-level grouping of these states into functional categories, I think that's fine - as long as we acknowledge that the functionally-defined set is going to contain mental states from many different kinds of physical systems. The one thing they'd all have in common is their functional profile. I actually think a bigger question is what constitutes a functional profile? How do we create this physically heterogeneous set so that it encapsulates a well-defined category ("mental kind")? That's an open question!

[@dibyanshugarg3855]

omg love you

[@mihnea4657]

very cool video! i am considering going to a cognitive science university and this video was really helpful.

[@THash-qs5qg]

Very nice talk. I'm a physician interested in Matter to Mind mystery for many years; have read lots of books, watched lots of videos but I think Ryan Rhodes talks/teachings are very good and he explains things in a very intellectual and unique way. But if you don't mind, can you tell me a bit about yourself Ryan; who are you :), what is your background and education in?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks! I'm a neurolinguist, and I teach cognitive science at Rutgers University.

[@THash-qs5qg]

@@RYANRHODES-cogsci your lectures are awesome! And just the perfect lengths of 20-30 minutes :) My question was more pertaining to your educational background - where did you go to school? PhD in neuroscience?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Thanks again! I have a BA, MA, and PhD in linguistics. I got my PhD at the University of Delaware, where I managed an EEG lab. I don't have a background in neuroscience, so I've had to learn a lot on the way! @@THash-qs5qg

[@THash-qs5qg]

@@RYANRHODES-cogsci That's amazing what you've done without a background in neuroscience. I, too, don't have a background in neuroscience (I'm a humble Pediatrician) but I've been so fascinated with the mind-body problem, that I've probably read/watched as much as a neuroscience student :) Keep up the great work Ryan!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

@@THash-qs5qg Thanks! Being a doctor is incredible too--a ton of work and study! I was never cut out for it

[@CollegeCompanion]

This was a great intro!

[@mahjabeenshoily7967]

There is no single theory or approach that best captures what the mind is about. How do you explain it Sir.. could you tell me about it..

[@Hafizmuhammedshamil313]

Nice explanation🥰👍

[@KalebPeters99]

My inclination, given the "embodied, embedded" etc definition of 4E cognition is that mental states comprise a complex, dynamic interaction between the physical states of brain, body, environment and history. The "mental" part comes simply through the viewing of all these physical states from the INSIDE of an autopoietic organism with intrinsic wants and needs. From inside a "Markov Blanket" (Friston) or a "Disassociative Boundary" (Kastrup), or maybe through "Recursive Relevance Realisation" (Vervaeke) This is why it is so complex and practically impossible to quantify fully, if we could quantify the entire quantum state of every particle in an organism and it's environment, then sure we could perfectly predict the mental state. There's nothing "spooky" happening. But since it's functionally impossible, higher level abstractions are all we can aim at. (As if it has ever been any other way) Really really great video, thank you 🙏

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

I think this is a viable definition! By I'm interested to see how far computationalism can take us

[@KalebPeters99]

@@RYANRHODES-cogsci I'm not sure if it lines up with your use of computationalism but Karl Friston's model is basically a computational one. The Free Energy Principle is super interesting if you haven't checked it out. Also I'm guessing you've heard of Vervaeke already, his stuff is just stellar. Thanks for the reply Ryan!

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

@@KalebPeters99 I am a fan of predictive coding, and I have used this framework for some of my speech perception research!

[@publicopinion3596]

This is kind of my like argument against purely empirical research method that dismisses that subjectivity needs to be analyzed. How an evolutionary psychologist might try to analyze the human mind largely influenced by its physical components versus a cultural anthropologist who immerses themselves in the subjectivity. This is not an argument against analyzing at the physical level just that the perspective of analyzing subjectivity is not as important and devalued because it doesn't always fully use the scientific method in its qualitative approach yet it is how we can map out our software will others can also map out the hardware. Also if you believe in monism then you will realize subjectivity is the software that rises out of the physical mechanism of the mind.

[@comedynightswithhorror760]

Hey I'm looking forward to enroll in a cog sci major at UCSD can you assist me as a mentor?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

What kind of assistance do you need? I do undergraduate advising for the cognitive science department at my home university, so I may be able to help.

[@comedynightswithhorror760]

@@RYANRHODES-cogsci That's great! Can you give me any social media contact of yours?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

@@comedynightswithhorror760 Of course, feel free to contact on twitter: twitter.com/wavyphd

[@quicknumbercrunch8691]

The mind is information processing for producing behavior. Other parts of the brain (such as the endocrine system) also produce behavior (of a different type). DNA and other information processing in the body do not produce behavior. They produce metabolic activity.

[@mariep.cichon8006]

Have you seen people combine therapy and cognitive science? Is there some literature you can recommend about it?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

I don't have a clinical background, so I couldn't say much about this. But I have heard good things about cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and there's some promising research with psychedelics that is really interesting from a cog sci perspective.

[@juliannamatteis8538]

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

[@mariazamora4595]

Philosophy and psychology we have Carl Jung psychoanalysis. Carl Jung proves Neuroscience he was right. We need some laws over psychology , perhaps people we don’t problems with the misuse of philosophy, and people start respecting philosophy and all real Genius who really provide positive impact in our society and the history of humanity.

[@abdurrakib2514]

Sir, I have done my bachelor degree in philosophy from bangladesh. My question is that Can I do masters degree in cognitive science?

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

Philosophy is a great background for cognitive science! If you're interested, I would encourage you to apply!

[@quicknumbercrunch8691]

Termite and other species are not collectively a mind. Collectively they do the work of two birds building a nest, but the birds also act on instinctive instructions so the two birds do not make a mind. It is possible that only humans have a mind---both individually and working collectively.

[@lakermangmx]

you could greenscreen that background though

[@RYANRHODES-cogsci]

I did some green screen tests, and I thought the black backdrop worked a little better. I may try greenscreening again in the future.

[@juliannamatteis8538]

I like the black!