Explaining the Mind

by Bartosz Brożek (Editor), Łukasz Kwiatek (Editor), Jerzy Stelmach (Editor)

Since the second half of the 20th century we have been witnessing a scientific revolution. Its focus has been on the explanation of how the brain works and creates the mind. The new and often surprising accounts of such varied phenomena as social bonds, emotions, language, creativity, morality, etc, have already influenced the contemporary worldview. The scope and depth of the new revolution is remarkable, but it comes as no surprise, given that the human brain is—arguably—the most complex system in the entire universe. Its complexity is stunning: billions of neurons, each of them capable of maintaining hundreds of thousands of connections, all responsible for our behaviour, thinking, decision-making, perception, beliefs. It is this incredibly complex system that underlies our mental life and makes us human. The contributors to this collection of essays represent various academic fields, including philosophy, primatology, psychology, and neuroscience. All these disciplines strive to achieve a better understanding of how the brain works and how it creates the mind.

294 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2019

About the author

Polish philosopher and jurist whose main research interests are in philosophy of law, philosophy of science, logic and cognitive science. He is currently professor of jurisprudence at the Jagiellonian University and vice dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration, as well as a deputy-director of the Copernicus Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in Kraków. Author or co-author of 20 book monographs (including Methods of Legal Reasoning from Springer, as well as The Double Truth Controversy and Rule-Following from Copernicus Center Press) and more than 70 scientific papers. He holds PhDs in both law (2003) and philosophy (2007), habilitation in law (2008) and the title of full professor (2013).

Professor Brożek received numerous awards and prizes, including the Award of the Prime Minister of Poland for the Habilitation Dissertation, the Scholarship of the Minister of Science and Higher Education for Outstanding Young Scholars, as well as the fellowship of Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. He is also a laureate of the Foundation for Polish Science MASTER programme (2015). In 2013 he was the youngest person in Poland who held the title of professor.