Richmond, Andrew (2024) Computational Externalism. [Preprint]

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Abstract

I argue that the brain does not have its computational structure intrinsically, but only in relation to its environment. I support this view (\textit{externalism}) with a case study in the neuroscience and evolutionary biology of color vision, showing that which aspects of the brain's causal structure rise to the level of computation — which features of its causal structure count as part of its functional structure or "wiring diagram" — depends on its environment. I show that this version of externalism helps answer some pressing methodological questions in neuroscience and explainable AI. Along the way I connect some traditional debates about externalism to contemporary cognitive science, and demonstrate the promise of a deflationary approach to cognitive scientific explanation.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Richmond, Andrew
Keywords:	Computation, explanation, externalism, cognitive science, neuroscience, deflationism
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Cognitive Science Specific Sciences > Computation/Information General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Neuroscience
Depositing User:	Andrew Richmond
Date Deposited:	26 Oct 2024 13:57
Last Modified:	26 Oct 2024 13:57
Item ID:	24113
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Cognitive Science Specific Sciences > Computation/Information General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Neuroscience
Date:	2024
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/24113

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