LC3 Philosophy of Mind, Body and Technology

The centrality of the mind raises the question, how to do justice to the body and how to take into account the interplay between mind, body and technology. In our course, we will discuss and explore the current understanding of mind and body in view of various technologies like brain imaging, brain-machine interfaces, artificial intelligence, surveillance technologies, and medical technologies. Furthermore, we will consider alternative perspectives on the mind (e.g., extended mind theory) and the body (e.g., phenomenology of the body and feminist theory) and will ask, how such approaches allow us to deepen our understanding of human-technology relations and to answer the question, what does it mean to be human for human beings in contemporary times.

Additionally, in preparing the presentation and writing the paper, students will, in terms of research skills, be trained to

Formulate a research question
Reflexively answer the research question
Select relevant literature and gradually zoom in

By preparing the presentation, students will practice summarizing and situate an academic paper / chapter. They will also be trained to explicitly formulate pro- and con-arguments in response to the paper. Finally, students will be trained to summarize the main line of arguments of an academic discussion.
Depending on the topic choice for the paper, students will also learn to

Choose and account for relevant theoretical approaches (e.g., if students have to choose a fitting framework to analysis a specific technology)
Interpret findings (e.g., by evaluating scientific literature on the mind/body)

Aim / objective

This course connects to the final qualification K2, K5, K6, S6, S9 of the PSTS programme, according to the following learning objectives

At the end of this course, you will be able to:

1. Investigate and evaluate relevant technologies and philosophical positions based on concepts, theories and approaches in philosophy of mind and philosophy of the body, and their relation to technology

To do so, you will learn to:

2. understand and discuss a number of prominent contemporary concepts, theories and approaches in philosophy of mind and philosophy of the body, and their relation to technology
3. appraise and critique these concepts, theories and approaches and their application in philosophical writing and discussion
4. identify and characterize contemporary issues that require concepts, theories and approaches from philosophy of mind, body and technology to solve
5. develop sound and creative argumentation using these concepts, theories and approaches

Students in the 4TU.Ethics track and PhD candidates in the „Ethics of Technology“ programme can opt to specialize on either Philosophy of Mind and the Body.

In this case, the learning goals are as follows:

At the end of this course, you will be able to:

1. Investigate and evaluate relevant technologies and philosophical positions based on concepts, theories and approaches in philosophy of mind or philosophy of the body, and their relation to technology

To do so, you will learn to:

2. understand and discuss a number of prominent contemporary concepts, theories and approaches in philosophy of mind or philosophy of the body, and their relation to technology
3. appraise and critique these concepts, theories and approaches and their application in philosophical writing and discussion
4. identify and characterize contemporary issues that require concepts, theories and approaches from philosophy of mind, body and technology to solve
5. develop sound and creative ethical argumentation using these concepts, theories and approaches

Content

This course acquaints students with current theories and approaches to the relations between mind, body, and technology. Our entry point is the central role of the human mind in the European and Anglo-American tradition of Philosophy. Simply put, human beings are considered to have a specific kind of mind that makes them human.

The centrality of the mind raises the question of how to do justice to the body and how to take into account the interplay between mind, body and technology. In our course, we will discuss and explore the current understanding of mind and body in view of various technologies like brain imaging, brain-machine interfaces, artificial intelligence, surveillance technologies, and medical technologies. Furthermore, we will consider alternative perspectives on the mind (e.g., extended mind theory) and the body (e.g., phenomenology of the body and feminist theory) and will ask, how such approaches allow us to deepen our understanding of human-technology relations and to answer the question:” what does it mean to be human for human beings in contemporary times?

Additionally, in preparing the presentation and writing the paper, students will, in terms of research skills, be trained to

• Formulate a research question

• Reflexively answer the research question

• Select relevant literature and gradually zoom in

By preparing the presentation, students will practice close reading, summarizing and situating an academic paper / chapter. They will also be trained to explicitly formulate pro- and con-arguments in response to the paper. Finally, students will be trained to summarize the main line of arguments of an academic discussion.
Depending on the topic choice for the paper, students will also learn to

• Choose and account for relevant theoretical approaches (e.g., if students have to choose a fitting framework to analysis a specific technology)

• Interpret findings (e.g., by evaluating scientific literature on the mind/body)

Teaching methods
The course has a seminar setting. There will be 8 sessions of 4 hours. The first meeting will offer a general introduction into the course topic. Three sessions will be dedicated Philosophy of the Mind and Philosophy of the Body each. The two parts of the course will follow a common structure: The first meeting is dedicated to the question, what is a mind / body? The second meeting will address the interplay between technology and the mind / body. The third meeting will be focus on a current specific discussion in the Philosophy of the mind / body. While the general set-up of the course suggests a ‘body / mind’-split, the discussions in class will make space for connections between the two domains.

Attendance is obligatory.

This course is offered to students in the 4TU E&T track. Students in this track can get additional support in form of a reading list / reader.
Students in the 4TU.Ethics track and PhD candidates from the 4TU.Ethics graduate programme will write a paper which focuses on the ethical aspects and implications of a technology on / through / due to mind and/or body . We offer the possibility of an additional (individual) meeting on how to make a connection between Philosophy of the Mind / Body and Ethics of Technology. In addition, PhD candidates from the 4TU.Ethics programme can opt to limit their participation in the course to the first introduction and the meetings that focus on Philosophy of Mind or Philosophy of the Body

Some sensitive topics will be mentioned and/or discussed in the readings and in the seminars, and it is our collective responsibility to do so with the necessary care while still engaging with them critically and philosophically. Such topics can include, but are not limited to, medical procedures, death, sexual violence, racism and more. We do our best to provide useful content warnings for each of the texts we provide an discuss. In so doing, we do not explicitly label some as trigger warnings, as triggers are specific to each person.

Requirements

The prospective student must have:

• Demonstrable and significant knowledge of the basics of philosophy of mind, body and/or technology

• Demonstrable skill in reading and analysing philosophical texts

• Demonstrable skill in academic, preferably philosophical writing

In addition, external (i.e., non-PSTS) students:

Must have successfully completed at least one of the following courses (or equivalent):

◦ Philosophy of Technology (201200063)

◦ Philosophical Theories and Methods (201200059)

◦ Phil. Anthropology and Technology (191612550)

Assessment

Students are asked to deliver a short presentation of 10 minutes on an assigned reading. The students will receive formative feedback.

Furthermore, they have to prepare a report on the presentation and the discussion of the text in class. By default, the student will prepare a report on the topic of the presentation. If there are more participants than topics for presentations, the student can decide about the topic of the report. (30% of the final grade)

Students will write a paper on a technology within the scope of the course. They are free to choose their own subject. (70% of the final grade).

To prepare for the paper, student will present an outline of the paper in the last meeting. The students will receive formative feedback on the presentation and the outline.

Each component of the final grade has to be graded sufficient or more (i.e. 5.5 or more). Participation in class is a condition for passing the course.

This course is offered to students in the 4TU E&T track. Students in this track will get additional support in form of a reading list / reader.
Students in the 4TU.Ethics track and PhD candidates from the 4TU.Ethics graduate programme will write a paper which focuses on the ethical aspects and implications. There will be one additional (individual) meeting on how to make a connection between Philosophy of the Mind / Body and Ethics of Technology. In addition, PhD candidates from the 4TU.Ethics programme can opt to limit their participation in the course to the first introduction and the meetings, which emphasis Philosophy of Mind or Philosophy of the Body.

Credit points

Study load is the equivalent of: 5 ECTS.

Costs

This course is free for members of the 4TU.Ethics.

Registration

Master students from outside the M-PSTS programme who would like to take this course can submit a request no later than 3 weeks before the start of the course, containing:

• Study progress overview from Osiris

• Motivation letter

The request must be sent to the study adviser Joe Beukes via email: c.j.beukes@utwente.nl

PhDs who like to attent the course can send an email to Jan-Peter Bergen (j.p.bergen@utwente.nl) explaining shortly why you would like to attend this course and how it would fit your research.

More information

For more information about the contents of this course, contact organizers Jan-Peter Bergen (j.p.bergen@utwente.nl) and Ciano Aydin