Anthony Jack, Ph.D. – Assistant Professor of Cognitive Science, Philosophy, and Psychology and Director of the Brain, Mind and Consciousness Laboratory at Case Western Reserve University
Friday April 8, 2011
12:30-1:30 p.m.
Crawford Hall – Room 9
Inamori Center
Case Western Reserve University
SEE SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT PARKING BELOW
The idea that science can inform ethics may look like an error. According to the British philosopher G.E. Moore, you can’t get “an ought from an is.” And, to confuse what is good with some set of physical properties is to commit the naturalistic fallacy. Neuroscience does not challenge these claims. On the contrary, Professor Jack will show how recent findings in cognitive neuroscience support the separation of the physical and moral. He will argue that cognitive neuroscience promises to revolutionize ethical thought, potentially informing every aspect from theoretical underpinnings to the practical implementation of ethical programs. The case for neuroethics is analogous to the case for neuroeconomics. Economists have realized they need to replace their flawed model of rational self-interested man with a scientifically inspired account of the actual processes that influence economic decision making. Ethical theories also have commitments to specific views about human nature. Although these aren’t always stated explicitly, it should be obvious that something is wrong with a moral theory that has the effect of actively discouraging ethical thought and behavior. Surprisingly, recent findings suggest that a major class of ethical theories suffer from just this problem.
Sponsored by the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence
A Special Announcement About Parking…
Dear Colleagues:
As many of you noticed last Friday, work is being done on the visitors parking lot between Amasa Stone Chapel and Crawford Hall. The work is expected to continue until the end of April, and so through the end of this Spring’s Friday Lunch schedule.
The last few weekly e-mails attempted to notify recipients that parking would be extremely limited, if available at all, through the end of the term. I am very sorry for anyone who was not aware and so was turned away. Because of this construction I do not think anyone should expect parking to be available in that lot on either April 8, 15, or 22.
Unfortunately, the work in the parking lot is part of a larger plan to install parking meters and eliminate free parking except by guests of particular administrative units of the university. The policy has been announced in Case Daily, at http://parking.case.edu/parking/vic.htm. We (meaning the CPS and the College of Arts and Sciences) have received no information about the rates that will be charged on the meters, or the time available on the meters, once they are installed.
I will be working at long distance and after my return to identify any way that some spaces could be reserved for Friday Lunch guests without charge. I cannot promise success. As there is no other free parking on campus, I do not think it makes sense to try to move next year’s Friday Lunch programs to another venue, but of course I will be checking out any possible ways to make the situation more convenient, especially for people with mobility concerns.
Please accept my apologies for this inconvenience.
Best regards,
Joe White
More About Our Guest…
Professor Anthony Jack has a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology and extensive training in Philosophy and Neuroscience. He started out doing largely theoretical work on consciousness, but then got interested by the emerging field of brain imaging. Professor Jack uses fMRI to study attention, consciousness and social processing in the brain.
Anthony Jacks’s Brain, Mind and Consciousness laboratory investigates high-level cognitive processes using brain imaging (fMRI), behavior and introspective reports. His lab is particularly interested in areas of overlap, as well as separation, between psychological processes involved in social cognition, mechanical reasoning, attention and self-awareness.
The work of the lab is informed by neuroscience, psychology and philosophy. The laboratory is situated in the transdisciplinary Department of Cognitive Science at Case Western Reserve University; and part of Case’s Cognitive Neuroscience Initiative. The Cognitive Science’s department is involved in collaborations across the University and beyond, including the Department of Neurology in the Medical School, the Department of Organizational Behavior in the Weatherhead School of Management, and the departments of Communication Sciences and Philosophy in Arts and Sciences.
Friday Lunch Upcoming Topics and Speakers:
April 15: Mark Naymik, Reporter, Cleveland Plain Dealer: Ohio’s Budget Battle
April 22: Jon Groetzinger, Visiting Professor of Law and Director, China Legal Programs: Developing the Legal Profession in China.
The Friday Lunch discussions are held on the lower (ground) level of Crawford Hall. Visitors with mobility issues may find it easiest to take advantage of special arrangements we have made. On most Fridays, a few parking spaces in the V.I.P. lot in between Crawford Hall and Amasa Stone Chapel are held for participants in the lunch discussion. Overflow parking is also available in the Severance Hall parking garage on East Boulevard.
Visitors then can avoid walking up the hill to the first floor of Crawford by entering the building on the ground level, through the garage area under the building. The further door on the left in that garage will be left unlocked during the period before the Friday lunch. On occasion, parking will be unavailable because of other university events.
For more information about these and other Center for Policy Studies programs, please see http://policy.case.edu.