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Neural Correlates of Complex Tone Processing and Hemispheric Asymmetry
Get PDFIn an effort to further explore the role of the right hemisphere in auditory processing, this study utilized brain event-related potentials (ERPs) and standardized low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA) in order to localize electrical brain activity of complex tone processing. Participants engaged in a diotic pitch discrimination task while ERP components were recorded from 28 electrodes on the scalp. ERPs were analyzed via individual/group average area measurements and were submitted to sLORETA for neural source localization. Results showed stronger right vs. left hemisphere activation to complex tone processing that was localized to regions of the auditory cortex. Findings support the notion that auditory cortical regions in the right hemisphere may be involved in music processing. Moreover, these findings indicate that source localization methods may be a good approach to study the complex nature of brain electrical activity during cognitive processing.Faculty Sponsor: Ralf Greenwald, Ph.D
Machine Functionalism: Brains as Computing Machines
Get PDFMachine functionalism, or, the computational theory of mind, states that the inner workings of the brain are akin to the information processing of a computer. There are numerous faults with this view. Not only are computers inaccurate models for brain states, but also consciousness--as understood as generating appropriate (behavior) outputs to corresponding inputs--can’t be generated through mechanical means
Pluralism and Foundationalism in the Applied Sciences
Get PDFNancy Cartwright develops her scientific pluralism within The Dappled World and argues for its supremacy over foundationalism. Cartwright believes that the sciences should be applied for humane benefits and not for knowledge’s sake alone. However, Cartwright does not give enough credit to the practical applications produced by foundationalists. Cartwright’s goals are not hindered or detracted from when working with foundationalists. In fact foundationalism and pluralism offer complimentary means of practical application, the outcome of which is a bettered ability to apply our sciences towards practical concerns than either position offers alone. I will use exemplary cases demonstrating these isolated shortcomings and complimentary benefits to advance this position
Problems for Infinitism
Get PDFInfinitism in epistemic justification is the thesis that the structure of justification consists in infinite, non-repeating series. Although superficially an implausible position, it is capable of presenting strong arguments in its favour, and has been growing in popularity. After briefly introducing the concept and the motivations for it, I will present a common objection (the finite minds problem) as well as a powerful reply which couches Infinitism in dispositional terms. I will then attempt to undermine this counter-objection by drawing parallels between it and the problems raised against semantic dispositionalism by Kripke’s exegesis of Wittgenstein’s private language argument
Remaking the Possible: Intelligibility and Trans Autonomy
Get PDFThis essay explores problems inherent to Butler’s concept of intelligibility as it is presented in her book Undoing Gender. By relegating gender minorities collectively to the unintelligible, Butler unintentionally diminishes the agency of gender minorities and their ability to produce themselves as subjects through oversights Butler makes with regard to the importance of embodiment. Accounts by transgender individuals and theorists, including objections to Butler’s work itself, emphasize different ways that trans individuals legitimate their own approach to norms of intelligibility. In order to salvage Butler’s notion of intelligibility, it is necessary to emphasize certain aspects and de-emphasize others. Through the work of various transgender thinkers, it is possible to emphasize the changing norms of intelligibility. Both discursively and through embodied experience, challenges are issued to the norm which undermine the terms of the norm itself. What results is recognition of how tenuous the norms of intelligibility are in and of themselves, and the necessity for a new ethic. This new ethic requires a position of deferral on the part of observers, which does not impose norms. Instead, each subject is allowed to determine through their discourse and the presentation of their embodiment how they will relate to the available norms
A Multifaceted Device for Discreetly Acquiring Natural Behaviors of Children with Autism
Get PDFAutism is a multifaceted neurological disorder that affects the four fundamental areas of sensory processing, communication mechanisms, social interaction skills, and whole child/self-esteem. The underlying mechanisms and symptoms of the disorder have been shown to largely vary from patient to patient, and therefore, a durable, effective therapy is best achieved through multifaceted, multidisciplinary approaches that allow a direct assessment of each individual’s behavior, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The aim of this project was to simulate, design, manufacture, and assess a device that can help cultivate sensory, social, communication, and motor skills in autistic children while being able to extract data of the child’s behavior that could be used by the therapist. Critical components of the toy involve auditory and visual stimulation, as well as interactive mechanisms to promote development. The most important features of the toy are hidden cameras that discreetly monitor the child’s reactions in order to provide analytical feedback mechanisms, allowing parents, caregivers, or therapists to monitor and evaluate the child’s learning and therapy. The performance of the toy was examined on 17 children with autism at two specialized centers for child with developmental disorders. The results showed that the device was found satisfactory by the majority of children as assessed by their willingness to spend time accomplishing the tasks on the device, as well as by captured videos of their natural reactions throughout. Furthermore, improved performance was observed on the same population of children who were tested multiple times, indicating the potential use of the toy for therapeutic and learning purposes.Faculty Sponsor: Danial Shahmirzad
Standardized Versus Naturalized: An Evaluation of Child Morphological and Syntactic Assessments
Get PDFSpeech-language pathologists may choose to evaluate children’s language using standardized or naturalized assessments. This study investigated if the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool 2 (CELF-P 2), a standardized assessment, and language sampling, a naturalized assessment, reveal the same information about children’s linguistic competence and performance. Children ages 3.0-7.0 were assessed with specific focus on morphology and syntax. The participants completed four morphosyntactic-based subtests of the CELF-P 2. Additionally, play-based interactions, used to elicit natural language, were video-recorded. The CELF-P 2 was scored and language samples were transcribed and analyzed. Mean length of utterance (MLU) scores showed a slightly more variable trend around the mean than CELF-P 2 scores and there were no significant correlations between the two assessments. Furthermore, the two forms of assessment produced incongruous age equivalents for 66% of the participants (four out of six) and participants produced different morphosyntactic structures during each type of assessment. Thus, results indicated limitations and successes of the different assessment approaches. When used alone, either form of assessment did not provide a completely accurate representation of children’s language acquisition. However, when used in conjunction, the two assessments may represent the linguistic competence and performance of children more accurately.Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Dorothy Leone, Ph.D., CCC-SL
Eliminating Eliminative Materialism
Get PDFEliminative materialism is a bold position in philosophy of mind: proponents of it hold that folk psychology is a primitive theory of human behavior, and like most primitive theories, it is, unfortunately, false. The alarming implications of this are that mental states don’t actually exist—humans don’t actually believe anything. In this paper I try to show that several central claims of eliminative materialism (specifically Paul Churchland’s version) are mistaken and, further, that it is, in fact, false. I first argue that folk psychology is not a theory, and that a proper understanding of the nature of basic beliefs, non-basic beliefs, and theories makes this clear; next, I claim that the eliminative materialist response to the charge of incoherence is inadequate as it misunderstands what mental states are; finally, I offer an argument for the falsity of eliminative materialism on common sense grounds, while undercutting objections to the argument by way of scientific anti-realism
Materialist and Casual Bridges over the Explanatory Gap
Get PDFI offer that the explanatory gap about consciousness can be bridged by a materialist account that is compatible with the causal closure of the physical world. I suggest that Jaegwon Kim’s argument for causal closure is the best motivation for materialist explanations of consciousness, or the character of subjective experience. I then propose that the best materialist account available to do this explanatory work, that is also compatible with a causal closure condition, is Austen Clark’s feature-placing hypothesis. Feature-placing has it that sensory individuals, or qualitative properties, are picked out by their locations in space around a perceiver, and it accounts for preattentive perceptual processes. Feature-placing is not compatible with functionalism however, which is a solution Kim offers to epiphenomenal theories of consciousness. I hold that despite feature-placing’s problems with functionalism, Clark’s account remains compatible with causal closure because it suggests physical reduction to neural processes, like selective attention mechanisms. I conclude that causal closure, combined with the feature-placing of sensory individuals by the spatial discrimination capacities organisms have can go a far way in bridging the explanatory gap
Affordance Ontology: Towards a Unified Description of Affordances as Events
Get PDFAn argument is developed that suggests the concept of affordances can best facilitate the pursuit of new knowledge if it’s defined as an event. The first description initially generated by James J. Gibson was deceptively vague. This has led to several attempts by additional researchers to re-describe it. These efforts fall short of describing a concept that is consistent with both the historical context of Gibson’s work and his motivations for introducing the term. Additionally, no definition has been introduced that aims to limit the scope of information researchers must consider when using the term. I put forth a description of affordances that is consistent with Gibson’s motivations and is pragmatically motivated to restrain the scope of inquiry. The application of this new description may lead to more fruitful experimentation and less problematic discourse throughout the disciplines that use the term