When we interact with animals, we intuitively read thoughts and feelings intotheir expressions and actions - it is easy to suppose that they have minds like ours. And as technology grows more sophisticated, we might soon find ourselves interpreting the behaviour of robots too in human terms. It is natural forus to humanize other beings in this way, but is it philosophically or scientifically justifiable? How different might the minds of animals or machines be to ours? As David McFarland asks here, could robots ever feel guilty, and is itcorrect to suppose your dog can truly be happy? Can we ever know what non-human minds might be like, or will the answer be forever out of our reach? Theseare central and important questions in the philosophy of mind, and this book is an accessible exploration of the differing philosophical positions that canbe taken on the issue. McFarland looks not only at philosophy, but also examines new evidence from the science of animal behaviour plus the latest developments in robotics and artificial intelligence, to show how many different - andsometimes surprising - conclusions we can draw about the nature of 'alien minds'.
- ISBN: 978-0-19-921930-8
- Editorial: Oxford University
- Encuadernacion: Rústica
- Páginas: 272
- Fecha Publicación: 01/03/2009
- Nº Volúmenes: 1
- Idioma: Inglés