Toward a Science of Consciousness 2012

Tucson

Plenary

ANTHONY JACK

Anthony Jack has long been interested in the intersection of
philosophy and the science of the mind. After studying Psychology and
Philosophy at Oxford University, he did a PhD in Experimental
Psychology at University College London on visual awareness in
perceptual masking. He then trained in cognitive neuroscience, doing
postdocs at two major centers for brain imaging: the Functional
Imaging Labs in London's Queen Square, and the department of Neurology
at Washington University in St. Louis. In this time he has studied a
range of cognitive processes, from low level perceptual processing in
primary visual cortex, to the executive functions of the frontal
lobes. He currently holds a faculty position in Cognitive Science at
Case Western Reserve University, where he runs the Brain, Mind and
Consciousness Lab and holds secondary appointments in the departments
of Philosophy, Psychology, Bioethics and Neurology. His current work
focuses on social and moral cognition and the default network.
Unlike many scientists working on consciousness, Prof. Jack's work is
not aimed at uncovering the neural bases of consciousness. He regards
that as a (largely) misconceived enterprise. Instead, his work aims to
reveal the cognitive origins of the mind-body problem, and more
generally how our cognitive architecture helps to generate tensions
that have implications for health, pro-social behavior and philosophy.