2008 AAAS Annual Meeting
Four aspects of 'humaniqueness' differentiating human and animal cognition
According to Hauser, animals have “laser beam” intelligence, in which a specific solution is used to solve a specific problem. But these solutions cannot be applied to new situations or to solve different kinds of problem. In contrast, humans have “floodlight” cognition, allowing us to use thought processes in new ways and to apply the solution of one problem to another situation.
No easy answers in evolution of human language
Ultimately, the important thing is to understand that language is, at bottom, something that takes place inside the human mind and is independent of any particular sound, sight or motion. The same internal mental construction could be expressed through verbal speech, through writing or through sign language without changing its basic nature, Berwick says. "It's not about this external thing you hear," he says. "It's about the representation inside your head."
Learning about brains from computers, and vice versa
As a test of the vision theory they were developing, they tried using the model vision system to actually interpret a series of photographs. Although the model had not been developed for that purpose--it was just supposed to be a theoretical analysis of how certain pathways in the brain work--it turned out to be as good as, or even better than, the best existing computer-vision systems, and as good as humans, at rapidly recognizing certain kinds of complex scenes.
Brain waves pattern themselves after rhythms of nature
When liquids undergo phase transitions, they evaporate into gas or freeze into ice. When the brain undergoes a phase transition, it moves from random to patterned activity.
According to Hauser, animals have “laser beam” intelligence, in which a specific solution is used to solve a specific problem. But these solutions cannot be applied to new situations or to solve different kinds of problem. In contrast, humans have “floodlight” cognition, allowing us to use thought processes in new ways and to apply the solution of one problem to another situation.
No easy answers in evolution of human language
Ultimately, the important thing is to understand that language is, at bottom, something that takes place inside the human mind and is independent of any particular sound, sight or motion. The same internal mental construction could be expressed through verbal speech, through writing or through sign language without changing its basic nature, Berwick says. "It's not about this external thing you hear," he says. "It's about the representation inside your head."
Learning about brains from computers, and vice versa
As a test of the vision theory they were developing, they tried using the model vision system to actually interpret a series of photographs. Although the model had not been developed for that purpose--it was just supposed to be a theoretical analysis of how certain pathways in the brain work--it turned out to be as good as, or even better than, the best existing computer-vision systems, and as good as humans, at rapidly recognizing certain kinds of complex scenes.
Brain waves pattern themselves after rhythms of nature
When liquids undergo phase transitions, they evaporate into gas or freeze into ice. When the brain undergoes a phase transition, it moves from random to patterned activity.