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330Assertion and its constitutive normsPhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 79 (1): 98-130. 2009.Alston, Searle, and Williamson advocate the restrictive model of assertion , according to which certain constitutive assertoric norms restrict which propositions one may assert. Sellars and Brandom advocate the dialectical model of assertion , which treats assertion as constituted by its role in the game of giving and asking for reasons. Sellars and Brandom develop a restrictive version of the dialectical model. I explore a non-restrictive version of the dialectical model. On such a view, consti…Read more
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228The Causal Relevance of Content to ComputationPhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 88 (1): 173-208. 2012.Many philosophers worry that the classical computational theory of mind (CTM) engenders epiphenomenalism. Building on Block’s (1990) discussion, I formulate a particularly troubling version of this worry. I then present a novel solution to CTM’s epiphenomenalist conundrum. I develop my solution within an interventionist theory of causal relevance. My solution departs substantially from orthodox versions of CTM. In particular, I reject the widespread picture of digital computation as formal synta…Read more
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64Review of Perception and Cognition – Gary Hatfield (review)Philosophical Quarterly 61 (242): 205-207. 2011.
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112Bayesian Sensorimotor PsychologyMind and Language 31 (1): 3-36. 2016.Sensorimotor psychology studies the mental processes that control goal-directed bodily motion. Recently, sensorimotor psychologists have provided empirically successful Bayesian models of motor control. These models describe how the motor system uses sensory input to select motor commands that promote goals set by high-level cognition. I highlight the impressive explanatory benefits offered by Bayesian models of motor control. I argue that our current best models assign explanatory centrality to…Read more
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85Some epistemological ramifications of the Borel–Kolmogorov paradoxSynthese 192 (3): 735-767. 2015.This paper discusses conditional probability $$P$$ P , or the probability of A given B. When $$P>0$$ P > 0 , the ratio formula determines $$P$$ P . When $$P=0$$ P = 0 , the ratio formula breaks down. The Borel–Kolmogorov paradox suggests that conditional probabilities in such cases are indeterminate or ill-posed. To analyze the paradox, I explore the relation between probability and intensionality. I argue that the paradox is a Frege case, similar to those that arise in many probabilistic and no…Read more
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212Church's Thesis and the Conceptual Analysis of ComputabilityNotre Dame Journal of Formal Logic 48 (2): 253-280. 2007.Church's thesis asserts that a number-theoretic function is intuitively computable if and only if it is recursive. A related thesis asserts that Turing's work yields a conceptual analysis of the intuitive notion of numerical computability. I endorse Church's thesis, but I argue against the related thesis. I argue that purported conceptual analyses based upon Turing's work involve a subtle but persistent circularity. Turing machines manipulate syntactic entities. To specify which number-theoretic…Read more
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126Are Computational Transitions Sensitive to Semantics?Australasian Journal of Philosophy 90 (4): 703-721. 2012.The formal conception of computation (FCC) holds that computational processes are not sensitive to semantic properties. FCC is popular, but it faces well-known difficulties. Accordingly, authors such as Block and Peacocke pursue a ?semantically-laden? alternative, according to which computation can be sensitive to semantics. I argue that computation is insensitive to semantics within a wide range of computational systems, including any system with ?derived? rather than ?original? intentionality.…Read more
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145The Representational Foundations of ComputationPhilosophia Mathematica 23 (3): 338-366. 2015.Turing computation over a non-linguistic domain presupposes a notation for the domain. Accordingly, computability theory studies notations for various non-linguistic domains. It illuminates how different ways of representing a domain support different finite mechanical procedures over that domain. Formal definitions and theorems yield a principled classification of notations based upon their computational properties. To understand computability theory, we must recognize that representation is a …Read more
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102Perceptual Constancies and Perceptual Modes of PresentationPhilosophy and Phenomenological Research 88 (2): 468-476. 2014.
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147ConventionStanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2008.The central philosophical task posed by conventions is to analyze what they are and how they differ from mere regularities of action and cognition. Subsidiary questions include: How do conventions arise? How are they sustained? How do we select between alternative conventions? Why should one conform to convention? What social good, if any, do conventions serve? How does convention relate to such notions as rule, norm, custom, practice, institution, and social contract? Apart from its intrinsic i…Read more
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Representation in Artificial Intelligence |