Patricia S. Churchland – författare

A provocative new account of how morality evolvedWhat is morality? Where does it come from? And why do most of us heed its call most of the time? In Braintrust, neurophilosophy pioneer Patricia Churchland argues that morality originates in the biology of the brain. She describes the "neurobiological platform of bonding" that, modified by evolutionary pressures and cultural values, has led to human styles of moral behavior. The result is a provocative genealogy of morals that asks us to reevaluate the priority given to religion, absolute rules, and pure reason in accounting for the basis of morality.Moral values, Churchland argues, are rooted in a behavior common to all mammals—the caring for offspring. The evolved structure, processes, and chemistry of the brain incline humans to strive not only for self-preservation but for the well-being of allied selves—first offspring, then mates, kin, and so on, in wider and wider "caring" circles. Separation and exclusion cause pain, and the company of loved ones causes pleasure; responding to feelings of social pain and pleasure, brains adjust their circuitry to local customs. In this way, caring is apportioned, conscience molded, and moral intuitions instilled. A key part of the story is oxytocin, an ancient body-and-brain molecule that, by decreasing the stress response, allows humans to develop the trust in one another necessary for the development of close-knit ties, social institutions, and morality.A major new account of what really makes us moral, Braintrust challenges us to reconsider the origins of some of our most cherished values.

The Computational Brain, das aussergewohnliche Buch uber vergleichende Forschung in den Bereichen von menschlichem Gehirn und neuesten Moglichkeiten der Computertechnologie, liegt hiermit erstmals in deutscher Sprache vor. Geschrieben von einem fuhrenden Forscherteam in den USA, ist es eine Fundgrube fur alle, die wissen wollen, was der Stand der Wissenschaft auf diesem Gebiet ist. Die Autoren fuhren die Bereiche der Neuroinformatik und Neurobiologie mit gut ausgesuchten Beispielen und der gebotenen Hintergrundinformation gekonnt zusammen. Das Buch wird somit nicht nur dem Fachwissenschaftler sondern auch dem interdisziplinaren Interesse des Informatikers und des Biologen auf eine hervorragende Weise gerecht. Ubersetzt wurde das Buch von Prof. Dr. Steffen Holldobler und Dipl.-Biol. Claudia Holldobler, einem Informatiker und einer Biologin. Rezension in Spektrum der Wissenschaft nr. 10, S. 122 f. im Oktober 1997 (...) Die 1992 erschienene amerikanische Originalausgabe des vorliegenden Werkes ist so erfolgreich, dass man bereits von einem Klassiker reden kann. (...) (...) ...ist das Buch sehr zu empfehlen.In Verbindung von Neurobiologie und Neuroinformatik konkurrenzlos, vermittelt es einiges von der Faszination theoretischer Hirnforschung, die auch in Deutschland zunehmend mehr Wissenschaftler in ihren Bann schlagt. Rezension erschienen in: Computer Spektrum 3/1997, S. 2 (...)Das Buch wird somit nicht nur dem Fachwissenschaftler, sondern auch den interdisziplinaren Interesse des Informatikers und des Biologen auf eine hervorragende Weise gerecht(...)

Any mention of the relationship, still poorly understood, between body (or brain) and mind invariably invokes the name of Descartes, who is often thought of as the father of modern philosophy and perhaps of neurophilosophy. Although a native of the heart of France (the region around Tours), Rene Descartes travelled widely, as everyone knows, especially to Holland and Sweden. It should come as no surprise, that the Congress of Neurophilosophy and Alzheimer's Disease was the first in the series of Fondation Ipsen Colloques Medecine et Recherche to be held outside France. The meeting was held in San Diego (California) on January 11, 1991. This venue was chosen for a number of reasons. The University of California San Diego is without doubt one of the most dynamic universities today. A good number of friends of the Fondation Ipsen who have taken part as speakers in previous conferences are based there. Patricia Churchland, whose publications have helped "launch" the term "neurophilosophy", also teaches there. The choice of this particular venue gave us the welcome opportunity of benefiting directly during the conference from the participation of many eminent (including some Nobel Prize-winning) scientists, including biochemists, neuro­ scientists and "alzheimerologist", psychologists, cognitive science specialists and philosophers.