Minds Brains And Learning

Why should psychologists and educators study the brain? Can neuroscientific research advance our understanding of student learning and motivation? What do informed readers need to know to tell the difference between plausible applications of brain research and unfounded speculation? This timely volume considers the benefits of incorporating findings from cognitive neuroscience into the fields of educational, developmental, and cognitive psychology. The book provides a basic foundation in the methodology of brain research; describes the factors that affect brain development; and reviews salient findings on attention, memory, emotion, and reading and mathematics. For each domain, the author considers the ways that the neuroscientific evidence overlaps with or diverges from existing psychological models. Readers gain skills for assessing the credibility of widely publicized claims regarding critical periods of learning, the effects of stress hormones on the brain, the role of music training in boosting academic performance, and more. Also elucidated are the possible neuroscientific bases of attention deficits, reading problems, and mathematical disabilities in children. The volume concludes by suggesting areas for future investigation that may help answer important questions about individual and developmental differences in learning.

This book addresses the philosophical questions that arise when neuroscientific research and technology are applied in the legal system. The empirical, practical, ethical, and conceptual issues that Pardo and Patterson seek to redress will deeply influence how we negotiate and implement the fruits of neuroscience in law and policy in the future.

Minds, Brains and Science takes up just the problems that perplex people, and it does what good philosophy always does: it dispels the illusion caused by the specious collision of truths. How do we reconcile common sense and science? John Searle argues vigorously that the truths of common sense and the truths of science are both right and that the only question is how to fit them together. Searle explains how we can reconcile an intuitive view of ourselves as conscious, free, rational agents with a universe that science tells us consists of mindless physical particles. He briskly and lucidly sets out his arguments against the familiar positions in the philosophy of mind, and details the consequences of his ideas for the mind-body problem, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, questions of action and free will, and the philosophy of the social sciences.

The basic questions addressed in this book are: what is the computational nature of cognition, and what role does it play in language and other mental processes?; What are the main characteristics of contemporary computational paradigms for describing cognition and how do they differ from each other?; What are the prospects for building cognition and how do they differ from each other?; and what are the prospects for building an artificial intelligence?

Decades before educators began to draw teaching and learning implications from neuroscientists’ groundbreaking findings on brain plasticiy, Reuven Feuerstein had already theorized it and developed practices for teaching and developing higher level cognition and learning for all students, even those with Down syndrome and other learning disabilities. His mediated learning, enrichment instruments, and dynamic assessment are used in urban districts in the United States and around the world to raise student achievement, success levels, and self-regulation. In this final work, Feuerstein provides a first-person reflective narrative of the implementation of mediated learning experience (MLE) past and present, including stories, new insights, observations, and newly formulated concepts on MLE and how it contributes to higher-level thinking and overcoming disability. Featuring both educational and clinical case examples, it offers a more detailed picture of the practical applications than any other publication to date. Those familiar with Feuerstein’s methods will find this book an important resource in deepening their knowledge. It is also essential reading for all educators looking for approaches that promote thinking skills that improve educational outcomes for diverse learners. Book Features: Provides stories of Feuerstein’s inspirational journey as a teacher and learner, often working with special needs children and youth. Relates mediated learning to contemporary learning environments Explores theory and research on whether spiritual and behavioral practices change the brain. Includes chapters devoted to questioning techniques and the effects of modern media access to the development of thinking skills. “Reuven Feuerstein’s concepts will continue to enrich cognitive developmental thinking and research and to bring a richer, fuller cognitive development to children, youth, and adults around the world.” —From the Foreword by H. Carl Haywood, Vanderbilt University “Educators who are devoted to enhancing the intellectual functioning of learners need this book. The principles, skills, and strategies of Mediated Learning should become a prerequisite for all teachers. Reuven Feuerstein has made the world a more thoughtful place.” —Arthur L. Costa, professor emeritus, California State University and co-founder, Institute for Habits of Mind International

The field of psychology, and especially neuropsychology, can be daunting for Christian students trying to find their way. In the face of surprising new research and radical new theories, it is tempting to limit the integration of Christianity and psychology to relatively "safe" topics that one can easily differentiate from matters of faith. In Minds, Brains, Souls and Gods, the highly esteemed professor of psychology, Malcolm Jeeves, insists on addressing the difficult questions head-on. Do I have a soul? How free am I? What makes me uniquely human? Does my brain have a "God spot"? In this hypothetical correspondence with a student, Jeeves argues that we must avoid false choices in the relation between Scripture and science. Christians need not choose between a "God of the gaps" that competes with science, a "neurotheology" that bases our understanding of God on the latest scientific theory, or a scientific reductionism that claims to have explained God away as a mere function of the brain. Students encountering the brave new world of neuroscience need not view such research as a threat to the faith. With the wisdom of a seasoned scholar, Jeeves guides us down the road less-traveled—the way of integration.

A bestselling author, neuroscientist, and computer engineer unveils a theory of intelligence that will revolutionize our understanding of the brain and the future of AI. For all of neuroscience's advances, we've made little progress on its biggest question: How do simple cells in the brain create intelligence? Jeff Hawkins and his team discovered that the brain uses maplike structures to build a model of the world—not just one model, but hundreds of thousands of models of everything we know. This discovery allows Hawkins to answer important questions about how we perceive the world, why we have a sense of self, and the origin of high-level thought. A Thousand Brains heralds a revolution in the understanding of intelligence. It is a big-think book, in every sense of the word. One of the Financial Times' Best Books of 2021 One of Bill Gates' Five Favorite Books of 2021

A review of research on learning and infancy, drawn from hundreds of case studies, shows how children by the age of three are virtual learning machines and discusses how parents can help this learning process.