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Concept formation and neuroscience.

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Hi guys! I hope you are doing well. I think Mrs. Rand's account of concept formation is fascinating and intelligent, however I see no proof for it in the field of neuroscience. I see no proof that concepts are formed in the brain at all, much less in the way that she describes. Am I missing some data? I understand that all concepts are supposed to have a perceptual base in reality according to Mrs. Rand, but I see no perceptual base for Mrs. Rand's account of concept formation. 

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3 hours ago, Satsanga said:

I see no proof that concepts are formed in the brain at all, much less in the way that she describes

Concepts are formed in the mind. So I assume you mean that the mind is not produced by the brain but is a type of faculty which you somehow have without physical organs to produce it. Well, proof to the contrary is not that tricky. Look at people's abilities to think or form concepts when they miss a lung versus when their brain gets physically damaged.

3 hours ago, Satsanga said:

I understand that all concepts are supposed to have a perceptual base in reality according to Mrs. Rand, but I see no perceptual base for Mrs. Rand's account of concept formation

I suggest you study her theory about how concepts of consciousness are formed; either way, your awareness is not limited to sense data, you also have awareness of your own thoughts and emotions. To arrive at a theory of concept-formation you must use introspection.

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17 hours ago, softwareNerd said:

What do you mean by "guys"?

(putting on grammar nerd hat)

As relevant here: "Guys", plural, is synonymous with "people" and has no gender implication, as contrasted with "guy", singular, which is synonymous with "male person".  So his "Hi guys!" was no more than a friendly greeting to whoever might read his post.

 

 

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7 hours ago, Invictus2017 said:

(putting on grammar nerd hat)

As relevant here: "Guys", plural, is synonymous with "people" and has no gender implication, as contrasted with "guy", singular, which is synonymous with "male person".  So his "Hi guys!" was no more than a friendly greeting to whoever might read his post.

 

 

*woosh*

You missed the joke! Also that it's subtly making the point that it sounds absurd to just say "concepts aren't in the brain" as if a simple concept like "guys" wouldn't even be real because it's not "in the brain" and therefore arbitrary.

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On 10/20/2018 at 7:01 PM, Eiuol said:

*woosh*

You missed the joke! Also that it's subtly making the point that it sounds absurd to just say "concepts aren't in the brain" as if a simple concept like "guys" wouldn't even be real because it's not "in the brain" and therefore arbitrary.

Heh.  I'm only skimming these days, as Real Life (TM) is taking up so much time that I don't have time to do more than that.  So I wouldn't be surprised that I missed a joke.

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On 10/19/2018 at 1:32 PM, KyaryPamyu said:

Concepts are formed in the mind. So I assume you mean that the mind is not produced by the brain but is a type of faculty which you somehow have without physical organs to produce it. Well, proof to the contrary is not that tricky. Look at people's abilities to think or form concepts when they miss a lung versus when their brain gets physically damaged.

I suggest you study her theory about how concepts of consciousness are formed; either way, your awareness is not limited to sense data, you also have awareness of your own thoughts and emotions. To arrive at a theory of concept-formation you must use introspection.

Thanks for the reply! I like the way you think. So the idea is that when the brain is damaged sometimes a persons ability to reason, etc., is compromised, therefore the brain is what thinks? 

 

As to your second point: I understand that Mrs. Rand came to her conclusion by subjective introspection, but I do find it very interesting that they cannot prove that concepts are formed in the brain. I define proof as "evidence sufficient to convince." 

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