Daniel Dennett
Daniel Dennett is an American philosopher, writer, and cognitive scientist whose research centers on the philosophy of mind, philosophy of science, and philosophy of biology, particularly as those fields relate to evolutionary biology and cognitive science. He is the co-director of the Center for Cognitive Studies and the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University. Dennett is known for his outspoken defense of a scientific and naturalistic view of consciousness, and his theories on the nature of free will. Among his most notable works are 'Consciousness Explained,' 'Darwin's Dangerous Idea,' and 'Freedom Evolves.'
Books
This list of books are ONLY the books that have been ranked on the lists that are aggregated on this site. This is not a comprehensive list of all books by this author.
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1. Consciousness Explained
The book in question offers a comprehensive theory of consciousness, challenging traditional views and proposing a scientific understanding of the mind. The author argues against the Cartesian model of consciousness as a central, unified entity and instead presents the "Multiple Drafts" model, which posits that consciousness arises from various cognitive processes occurring in parallel. The work delves into the nature of perception, memory, and language, employing insights from psychology, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence to explain how complex phenomena such as self-awareness and intentionality can emerge from the interactions of non-conscious brain functions. The book is both a critique of outdated philosophical ideas about the mind and an attempt to clarify how consciousness can be studied and understood through empirical means.
The 2186th Greatest Book of All Time
