Patricia Churchland

Cognitive Science Canadian-American 1943 99 quotes

A prominent neurophilosopher who advocates for a scientific, brain-based understanding of the mind and consciousness.

Quotes by Patricia Churchland

The brain is not just a collection of neurons; it's a network of networks.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is not a blank slate; it comes with a lot of pre-programmed biases and tendencies.

Braintrust: What Neuroscience Tells Us about Morality 2011

Our moral decisions are often driven by emotion, not just reason.

Braintrust: What Neuroscience Tells Us about Morality 2011

The brain is a learning machine, constantly updating its models of the world.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is a dynamic system, always in flux.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is a powerful engine of creativity and imagination.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is a social organ, and our social interactions shape its development and function.

Braintrust: What Neuroscience Tells Us about Morality 2011

The brain is a problem-solving device, constantly trying to make sense of the world.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is a beautiful and intricate piece of biological machinery.

Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain 2013

The brain is the organ of the mind, and to understand the mind, we must understand the brain.

Neurophilosophy: Toward a Unified Science of the Mind-Brain 1986

Folk psychology is probably false, and we shall have to find a better way to understand ourselves.

Neurophilosophy 1981

The brain is the organ that learns, remembers, and decides; there is no separate soul or mind.

Neurophilosophy 1986

We are our brains, nothing more and nothing less.

Touching a Nerve 2013

Morality is a biological phenomenon, rooted in the brain's reward systems.

Braintrust 2011

The idea of an immaterial soul is a relic of pre-scientific thinking.

Neurophilosophy 1986

To understand consciousness, look to the neurons firing in the brain.

Brain-Wise 2002

Eliminative materialism: propositional attitudes don't exist as we think they do.

Journal Article 1981

Love and trust are neurochemical processes, not mystical forces.

Braintrust 2011

The self is a narrative constructed by the brain.

Touching a Nerve 2013

Science progresses by falsifying old theories, not by confirming them.

Speech 1995