Talk 27th Nov: Piotr Winkielman

Prof. Piotr Winkielman (UC San Diego)

12pm Wednesday 27th Nov., Nike Lecture Theatre, Agriculture.

Emotion, Cognition, and ‘Rational’ Embodiment

Emotions permeate social life and influence perception, cognition, decision, and action. But how do emotions do all that? I will argue that emotions often shape thoughts and behaviors via embodied mechanisms. In support, I will present evidence for the role of somatosensory and motor resources in the domain of recognition and imitation of facial expressions, understanding of emotional language, and influence of emotion on risky decisions.

Critically, my talk will also present evidence for a dynamic or ‘rational’ nature of embodiment. That is, I will show a selective, goal-dependent recruitment of specific somatosensory and motor resources, and only if such resources are needed. Overall, my talk will call for a more flexible view of the links between emotion, cognition, and embodiment.

Talk 27th Nov: Joanna Rączaszek-Leonardi

Dr Joanna Rączaszek-Leonardi from the University of Warsaw will be at the Brain Embodiment Lab on Wednesday, November 27th. She will give a talk in the Gordon Lecture Theatre in the School of Systems Engineering at 2pm on that day on the topic of language, symbols, and constraints. Her research aims to understand the objective physical basis of subjective meaning and purpose, and takes some first steps to bridge the gap between neuronal interactions and the mind.

PhD Studentships in Philosophy

Offered by the South, West and Wales Doctoral Training Partnership

Our Doctoral Training Partnership will be offering a considerable number of AHRC studentships in Philosophy this year. Successful applicants for these studentships will have at least two research supervisors, and these will often be at different universities within this Doctoral Training Partnership. Students will be affiliated with the first supervisor’s university. The second supervisor is allowed to be in a discipline other than Philosophy. The Partnership is strong in many different areas of Philosophy and in inter-disciplinary research that includes Philosophy. Applications are welcome in virtually any area of Philosophy and in a wide array of inter-disciplinary investigations in which Philosophy plays a large part.

For further information, see:

http://www.reading.ac.uk/philosophy/pg-research/phil-pgrabout.aspx

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/philosophy/

http://www.cf.ac.uk/encap/contactsandpeople/academic/philosophy.html

http://www.southampton.ac.uk/philosophy/research/index.page

http://socialsciences.exeter.ac.uk/sociology/postgraduate/phd/