Gualtiero Piccinini
@gualtiero.bsky.social
Florence G. Kline Prof & Curators’ Distinguished Prof @ MU. Barwise Prize winner. Author, Neurocognitive Mechanisms (OUP 2020). Resist fascism, address climate change, support Ukraine!
Why you should stop using the label "cognitive science" and use "mind sciences" instead (or something like that): philosophyofbrains.com/2025/11/08/f...
From Cognitive Science to the Mind Sciences — The Brains Blog
Mindcraft is a series of opinion posts on current issues in cognitive science by Brains Blog founder Gualtiero Piccinini. Do you agree? Disagree? Please contribute on the discussion board below! If…
philosophyofbrains.com
November 8, 2025 at 10:41 PM
Why you should stop using the label "cognitive science" and use "mind sciences" instead (or something like that): philosophyofbrains.com/2025/11/08/f...
If you are applying to philosophy PhD programs, consider applying to Mizzou. I'm Director of Grad Admissions this year so ask me about it. Deadline to be considered for a fellowship is Jan 10.
The University of Missouri’s Department of Philosophy is accepting applications to our five-year PhD program. Winning applicants will receive a teaching assistantship, including a stipend, tuition waiver, and health care. Please encourage philosophy majors who would thrive in our program.
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November 5, 2025 at 10:49 PM
If you are applying to philosophy PhD programs, consider applying to Mizzou. I'm Director of Grad Admissions this year so ask me about it. Deadline to be considered for a fellowship is Jan 10.
Check out this excellent paper:
My paper "Why prosocial octopuses challenge the autonomy of psychological states" has just been published by Synthese. I argue that some psychological states require neural realizers, and this challenges automony.
@socphilneuro.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
@socphilneuro.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Why prosocial octopuses challenge the autonomy of psychological states - Synthese
Researchers administered MDMA (known as ecstasy) to octopuses and observed their behavior. Due, at least in part, to serotonin transport systems nearly identical to human ones, octopuses on ecstasy be...
link.springer.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Check out this excellent paper:
Looking forward to this too!
Looking forward to this!
#philsci #cogsky #CognitiveNeuroscience
www.merex-project.org/workshop-2026
@tonychemero.bsky.social @dcm.social.sunet.se.ap.brid.gy @davidcolaco.bsky.social @francesegan.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social @laurennross.bsky.social @okaydaniellle.bsky.social
#philsci #cogsky #CognitiveNeuroscience
www.merex-project.org/workshop-2026
@tonychemero.bsky.social @dcm.social.sunet.se.ap.brid.gy @davidcolaco.bsky.social @francesegan.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social @laurennross.bsky.social @okaydaniellle.bsky.social
We are pleased to announce that our next workshop on explanatory paradigms in cognitive neuroscience (examining pluralism, integration, and elimination as competing alternatives) will take place on 25th to 27th February at TU Berlin. You're most welcome to join us there 😀
October 29, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Looking forward to this too!
A paper on mine entitled "Neural Hardware for the Language of Thought: New Rules for an Old Game" has been circulating since early 2025 and has been cited in print. I have received anonymous feedback from some Classical LOT supporters and made some revisions to address their concerns.
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October 15, 2025 at 2:15 AM
A paper on mine entitled "Neural Hardware for the Language of Thought: New Rules for an Old Game" has been circulating since early 2025 and has been cited in print. I have received anonymous feedback from some Classical LOT supporters and made some revisions to address their concerns.
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👇
Our chapter on cognitive homologies *in print* ! 🤩
@beakr.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social
Thread & link 🔗 below👇
@beakr.bsky.social @gualtiero.bsky.social
Thread & link 🔗 below👇
October 9, 2025 at 7:52 PM
👇
My commentary on Anil Seth's forthcoming BBS target article defending biological naturalism has been accepted. It's entitled "The Neurobiophysical Substrate of Consciousness":
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Academia.edu
October 9, 2025 at 2:58 AM
My commentary on Anil Seth's forthcoming BBS target article defending biological naturalism has been accepted. It's entitled "The Neurobiophysical Substrate of Consciousness":
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Reposted by Gualtiero Piccinini
This book is finally out. You'll find there our chapter on "Frames of discovery and the format of cognitive representation" by yours truly and Dimitri Coelho Mollo.
Thanks to @gualtiero.bsky.social for the amazing editirial work!
Thanks to @gualtiero.bsky.social for the amazing editirial work!
😊 So proud this is out now:
"Cognitive ontology in terms of cognitive homology: The role of brain, behavior, and environment for individuating cognitive categories" #philsci #CognitiveNeuroscience
Thanks to @marielgoddu.bsky.social and to @gualtiero.bsky.social!
www.routledge.com/Neurocogniti...
"Cognitive ontology in terms of cognitive homology: The role of brain, behavior, and environment for individuating cognitive categories" #philsci #CognitiveNeuroscience
Thanks to @marielgoddu.bsky.social and to @gualtiero.bsky.social!
www.routledge.com/Neurocogniti...
Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind
This volume provides a cohesive and comprehensive case that cognitive neuroscience is maturing into an integrated, interdisciplinary science that is transforming our understanding of the mind.
The ris...
www.routledge.com
September 20, 2025 at 6:53 AM
This book is finally out. You'll find there our chapter on "Frames of discovery and the format of cognitive representation" by yours truly and Dimitri Coelho Mollo.
Thanks to @gualtiero.bsky.social for the amazing editirial work!
Thanks to @gualtiero.bsky.social for the amazing editirial work!
Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind is out. Check it out.
😊 So proud this is out now:
"Cognitive ontology in terms of cognitive homology: The role of brain, behavior, and environment for individuating cognitive categories" #philsci #CognitiveNeuroscience
Thanks to @marielgoddu.bsky.social and to @gualtiero.bsky.social!
www.routledge.com/Neurocogniti...
"Cognitive ontology in terms of cognitive homology: The role of brain, behavior, and environment for individuating cognitive categories" #philsci #CognitiveNeuroscience
Thanks to @marielgoddu.bsky.social and to @gualtiero.bsky.social!
www.routledge.com/Neurocogniti...
Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind
This volume provides a cohesive and comprehensive case that cognitive neuroscience is maturing into an integrated, interdisciplinary science that is transforming our understanding of the mind.
The ris...
www.routledge.com
September 19, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind is out. Check it out.
Revealed: the huge growth of Myanmar scam centres that may hold 100,000 trafficked people - The Guardian
September 8, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Revealed: the huge growth of Myanmar scam centres that may hold 100,000 trafficked people - The Guardian
I recently learned that Robert "Bob" Gordon, of simulation theory fame, passed away on April 13, 2025, at the age of 92. A celebration of his life will occur on Sunday, September 28, 2025 at 5:00 – 7:00 pm Central at the Ethical Society of St. Louis.
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September 5, 2025 at 10:57 AM
I recently learned that Robert "Bob" Gordon, of simulation theory fame, passed away on April 13, 2025, at the age of 92. A celebration of his life will occur on Sunday, September 28, 2025 at 5:00 – 7:00 pm Central at the Ethical Society of St. Louis.
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👇🙏😚
This paper by @gualtiero.bsky.social gives a great overview of the (unnecessary and unfounded) conflation of computationalism and functionalism: philarchive.org/rec/PICFC
Gualtiero Piccinini, Functionalism, Computationalism, & Mental States - PhilArchive
Some philosophers have conflated functionalism and computationalism. I reconstruct how this came about and uncover two assumptions that made the conflation possible. They are the assumptions that (i) ...
philarchive.org
August 23, 2025 at 9:29 AM
👇🙏😚
A substantively revised version of the SEP entry on Computation in Physical Systems, with several updates, new references, and other improvements, just came live. Link below.
August 20, 2025 at 5:52 PM
A substantively revised version of the SEP entry on Computation in Physical Systems, with several updates, new references, and other improvements, just came live. Link below.
Check this out:
I’m looking forward to our symposium at @ispsm.bsky.social on Sat at 5:30pm CEST. Zoom in to catch me, @kenaizawa.bsky.social, @gualtiero.bsky.social, and @francesegan.bsky.social talk about realism in Neuroscience! 🧠 🥳
August 13, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Check this out:
Submissions are due soon on philosophy and neuromorphic AI
LAST REMINDER! ⏰ Our call for papers is approaching its final deadline! Don't miss your chance to submit your work. One month left!
Submission: journals.ub.uni-koeln.de/index.php/ph...
@gualtiero.bsky.social @loehrgui.bsky.social @philosophyofai.bsky.social @wanjawiese.bsky.social
#philsky
Submission: journals.ub.uni-koeln.de/index.php/ph...
@gualtiero.bsky.social @loehrgui.bsky.social @philosophyofai.bsky.social @wanjawiese.bsky.social
#philsky
August 6, 2025 at 12:10 PM
Submissions are due soon on philosophy and neuromorphic AI
I'm teaching a course on consciousness and I'd like to cover the role of memory for consciousness, especially how some sort of memory buffer is needed to stabilize experiences long enough for us to experience it and report on them. Does anyone know of any good literature on this?
August 6, 2025 at 12:08 PM
I'm teaching a course on consciousness and I'd like to cover the role of memory for consciousness, especially how some sort of memory buffer is needed to stabilize experiences long enough for us to experience it and report on them. Does anyone know of any good literature on this?
Gill Eapen interviewed me on some of my recent work -- integrating psych and neuro, classical vs nonclassical LOT, egalitarian composition and realization, and knowing that as knowing how -- for the podcast Scientific Sense. Links below.
June 28, 2025 at 3:42 AM
Gill Eapen interviewed me on some of my recent work -- integrating psych and neuro, classical vs nonclassical LOT, egalitarian composition and realization, and knowing that as knowing how -- for the podcast Scientific Sense. Links below.
After rejections from 20 distinct journals over 7 years (my personal record), "Composition as Trans-scalar Identity", coauthored with Alex Schumm and Waldemar Rohloff, just got published open access in Acta Analytica (link below).
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June 8, 2025 at 11:54 AM
After rejections from 20 distinct journals over 7 years (my personal record), "Composition as Trans-scalar Identity", coauthored with Alex Schumm and Waldemar Rohloff, just got published open access in Acta Analytica (link below).
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Reposted by Gualtiero Piccinini
But wherever one sits on this topic, it's plainly the case that different people use representation in different ways to mean different things (which may be internally consistent). E.g. For @gualtiero.bsky.social representation is a powerful tool which is difficult to make
bsky.app/profile/gual...
bsky.app/profile/gual...
Here is an eg of article that makes some basic assumptions explicit. It takes a lot more than stimulus causing neural response for representation: www.frontiersin.org/journals/neu...
Frontiers | Situated Neural Representations: Solving the Problems of Content
Situated approaches to cognition maintain that cognition is embodied, embedded, enactive, and affective (and extended, but that is not relevant here). Situat...
www.frontiersin.org
June 6, 2025 at 10:01 AM
But wherever one sits on this topic, it's plainly the case that different people use representation in different ways to mean different things (which may be internally consistent). E.g. For @gualtiero.bsky.social representation is a powerful tool which is difficult to make
bsky.app/profile/gual...
bsky.app/profile/gual...
Opinion | A letter to sad Elon Musk, from America: 'Hey pal, sorry everybody was mean.' | Opinion - USA TODAY
June 3, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Opinion | A letter to sad Elon Musk, from America: 'Hey pal, sorry everybody was mean.' | Opinion - USA TODAY
The volume Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind is in press at Routledge, expected out in Sep of this year (link in first comment). Thanks to the authors for their hard work.
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May 23, 2025 at 3:13 AM
The volume Neurocognitive Foundations of Mind is in press at Routledge, expected out in Sep of this year (link in first comment). Thanks to the authors for their hard work.
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Tesla employees ask Elon Musk to resign, confirm massive demand problem, get fired for it - Electrek
May 11, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Tesla employees ask Elon Musk to resign, confirm massive demand problem, get fired for it - Electrek
As of 9/1//25, I will become the Florence G. Kline Professor of Philosophy at MU. This position comes with research money, which I'd like to use wisely.
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May 10, 2025 at 5:25 PM
As of 9/1//25, I will become the Florence G. Kline Professor of Philosophy at MU. This position comes with research money, which I'd like to use wisely.
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How does it not make sense 🧐
Zoe Drayson discussing neural representations and evaluating the proposal that "neural representations are observed" by Thomson and @gualtiero.bsky.social.
I can't see how this argument by Thomson and Piccinini makes sense 😅
I can't see how this argument by Thomson and Piccinini makes sense 😅
April 28, 2025 at 2:29 PM
How does it not make sense 🧐