Consciousness: Creeping up on the Hard Problem - Softcover

Gray, Jeffrey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0198520913 ISBN 13: 9780198520917

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2007

Synopsis

How does consciousness arise out of the functioning of the human brain? This work presents an analysis of our conscious lives, with profound implications for human nature.

About this title

About the Author

In 1983, Jeffrey Gray received the Presidents' Award of the British Psychological Society. He has given the Lister Lecture to the British Association for the Advancement of Science (1967), the Myers Lecture to the British Psychological Society (1977), the Donald Hebb Lecture at McGill University, Montreal (1994), and the Kenneth Craik Lecture (1995) at St John's College, Cambridge. He was elected a Fellow of the British Psychological Society in 1993, President of the Experimental Psychology Society 1996-1998, and life-time Honorary Member of the Experimental Psychology Society, 1999. He was Mary Morten Moody Visiting Professor, VMI, Virginia USA in 1983, and Visiting Professor at the CollPge de France, Paris, in 1999. He has received an Honorary Doctorate from Washington and Lee University, Virginia USA, 2000, and an Honorary Fellowship at Goldsmiths College, London University, 2002.

Review

"An excellent overview that touches expertly on the many biological and psychological features underlying the consciouse experience." --Journal of Consciousness Studies

"In many ways the book is a tour de force, reflecting not just Gray's sensitive understanding of and extensive research in neuroscience, but unusually for a neuroscientist, a relatively sophisticated understanding of the philosophical issues surrounding consciousness as well... a fine thoughtful book. It is leading edge, engagingly written in a way that both students and researchers will appreciate, and forms a fitting testament to his searching intellectual life." --Applied Cognitive Psychology

"A well-written, thoroughly researched investigation... a significant piece of scholarship. Throughout, Gray presents complicated philosophical and neurobiological issues in a logical and coherent manner, and he clears the ground for other scientists to propose solutions to the hard problem of consciousness. Jeffrey Gray passed away in April 2004. This book is a testament to his intellectual giftedness, energy, and enormous talent." --Learning for Democracy

"... will be enjoyed by everyone interested in consciousness. Gray, a neuropsychologist, eloquently summarizes significant experimental results on consciousness and, more importantly, explains both how these results interrelate and how they constrain potential theories of consciousness. He also uses these results to build a novel, fascinating thoery of what consciousness does and does not do. Throughout the work Gray's accessible presentation remains deeply respectul of psychologists, neuroscientists, and philosopher's approaches to consciousness. In this repect, Gray's book is an ideal work for an interdisciplinary audience." --Psyche

"The late Professor Emeritus Jeffrey Gray is one to be remembered well. He is known for many things, including being of the most highly cited experimental psychologists in the UK to generating theories of human consciousness... This book is the culmination of Gray's long-standing quest for understanding the essential properties of consciousness... Gray's book is well worth the read. His coverage of models that address the hard problem of consciousness is reasonably complete. Gray is highly skilled at thoroughly critiquing each model (always finding both strengths and weaknesses). He gives the same constructive criticism to each model, in exactly the same measure he gives his own. His style is entirely fair-minded and refreshing... This is an excellent book that comes at the conclusion of the life of an outstanding member of academia. It is a timeless addition to any library for this reason alone." --Science and Consciousness Review

"Gray admits that reconciling a causal role for consciousness with the completeness of physics is difficult. I would say impossible. His book is unusual, though, in devoting considerable attention to the question of the efficacy of consciousness. Everyone who believes that continued research will throw light on the nature of consciousness including those who deny its causal efficacy can meanwhile acknowledge its supreme value and enjoy language and science and appreciate beauty." --Philosophy Now

"...remarkable both for the clarity of its expositions, and for the patience with which he explores the prospects for integrating the hard problem into normal science." --New Scientist

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0198520913
• ISBN 13: 9780198520917
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368