Foundations of cognitive science

Abstract

The hope that biological and cognitive levels of investigation might be integrated has had a long history. Once it became evident that the operations of the brain were essential for thoughts and actions, discovering the biological basis for mental functions was an abiding objective (see, for example, Hippocrates (trans. 1949), Gall and Spurzheim 1968, von Helmholtz 1948, Cajal 1937, and Jackson 1958). Translating that goal into reality has been far from straightforward, however, because nervous systems are notoriously difficult to study. Until quite recently the hope often seemed frustratingly remote and unattainable. A number of developments have improved the prospects that some of the biological mechanisms underlying cognition may be discovered in this century. In particular, important new techniques for investigating the functions of the brain have been invented in the last several decades that make possible a much more detailed structural and functional description of the brain than was previously available. Additionally we