"Mind and Brain" with William Uttal (Brain Science Podcast 83)

In the most recent Brain Science Podcast (#83), Dr. Ginger Campbell speaks with Dr. William Uttal, author of Mind and Brain: A Critical Appraisal of Cognitive Neuroscience. Dr. Uttal is fascinated by the brain/mind problem (the "hard problem" in philosophy of mind) and does not believe, unlike many of his peers, it can be solved with brain imaging science.

"Mind and Brain" with William Uttal (BSP 83)

Hosted by Ginger Campbell, MDar

 

 

William Uttal, PhD"There is nothing more exciting than the mind/brain problem" according to Dr. William Uttal, author of Mind and Brain: A Critical Appraisal of Cognitive Neuroscience. In the latest episode of the Brain Science Podcast (BSP 83) I talked with Dr. Uttal about why he feels that brain imaging can not solve this mystery. First, there is the problem that brain imaging represents the wrong level of analysis because every spot you see on a brain scan actually represents thousands of neurons. This means that the activity and interaction between individual neurons has been lost. Then there is the problem of reproducibility, with divergent results between studies. The evidence is accumulating that "much of the brain responds to any stimulus, and every area of the brain participates in multiple functions." This means that asking where a given function occurs may be the wrong question.

BSP 83 represents an on-going discussion of these issues, so I have included links to related episodes in the show notes. 

Listen to Episode 83

Episode Transcript (Free PDF)

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References: 

• Uttal, W. R. (2011) Mind and Brain: A Critical Appraisal of Cognitive Neuroscience.
• Uttal, W. R. (2009) Neuroscience in the courtroom: What every lawyer should know about the mind and the brain.
• Ihnen, S. K. Z., Church, J. A.. Petersen, S. E., & Schlaggar, B.L. (2009) Lack of generalizability of sex difference in the fMRI Bold Activity associated with language processes in adults. NeuroImage, 45, 1020-1032.
• Ioannidis, J. P. A. (2005). "Why Most Published Research Findings Are False". PLoS Medicine 2 (8): e124.
• For more references go to the free episode transcript. 

Related Podcasts:  

• BSP 46: How fMRI works.
• BSP 78: Discussion of Beyond Boundaries: The New Neuroscience of Connecting Brains with Machines---and How It Will Change Our Lives by Miguel Nicolelis.
• BSP 79: Interview with Miguel Nicolelis.
• BSP 82: Discussion of Who's in Charge?: Free Will and the Science of the Brain by Michael S. Gazzaniga. 

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