Neuroscience ethnic critic Jonah Lehrer has just written about a unusual new subculture : experimental philosophy , or x - phi . These ethical trailblazer desire to combine the scientific method acting and its peter , like fMRI brain scan , with traditional philosophy . Many ten - phi adherents are eager to do things like , say , map the clinical neurology of altruistic behavior . discover out why x - phi is also the first school of philosophy to urge burn furniture and vidcasting after the jump .
Rarely have I ever learned about a new philosophical trend on YouTube , but that ’s what ’s majuscule about x - phi . It ’s all about the outreach . A guy who could be in Weezer , or could be your TA , offersa 3.5 bit rundown of twentieth one C philosophical revolutions leading up to the x - phi revolutionin this illuminating mini - lecture ( note the stuffed cervid head and unearthly music in background ) . Then there ’s thex - phi music video , featuring a burning electric chair ( a reference to the idea that the effective puppet for doing doctrine is an sure-enough armchair ) .
But what kind of scientific experiments have these basal philosopher of YouTube conducted ? Have they located the seat of reason or mind in the wit ? Have they regain nerve cell that twitch when you contemplate the Heidiggerian thought of “ das Ding ” ?
Apparently , no . They spend a lot of timearguing about what count as x - phi , and bestow crap to theirFacebook group page . When you investigate the “ labs ” where x - phi happens , you find out that they mostly study things likehow masses use spoken language . They do n’t have EEG setups ; they havediscussion groups . Theone reference I could find to an actual XTC - phi experimentinvolved collapse citizenry surveys to ask what they opine about a couple of basic honorable questions about the environs . This is not severe science , people .
I ’m not going to take these x - phi geeks badly until they set about cut up brains , torturing computer mouse , and force undergraduate to look at weird painting while strapped into MRI machines .
Experimental Philosophy[The Frontal Cortex ]
Cognitive scienceScience
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