Neuroepistemology is an empirical approach to

epistemology Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics. Episte ...

—the study of knowledge in a general, philosophical sense—which is informed by modern

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, development ...

, especially the study of the structure and operation of the

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...

involving

neural networks A neural network is a network or circuit of biological neurons, or, in a modern sense, an artificial neural network, composed of artificial neurons or nodes. Thus, a neural network is either a biological neural network, made up of biological ...

and neuronal epistemology. Philosopher

Patricia Churchland Patricia Smith Churchland (born 16 July 1943) is a Canadian-American analytic philosopher noted for her contributions to neurophilosophy and the philosophy of mind. She is UC President's Professor of Philosophy Emerita at the University of Calif ...

has written about the topic and, in her book ''Brain-Wise'', characterised the problem as "how meat knows". Georg Northoff, in his ''Philosophy of the Brain'', wrote that it "focuses on direct linkage between the brain on one hand and epistemic abilities and inabilities on the other."

Assumptive framework

The postmodernist Menachem Mazabow wrote that it "is necessary... to state the set of assumptions that are seen as fundamental to any neuro-epistemological inquiry." These include: # The significance of revealing the suppositions which influence one’s behavior (the self-reflexive connection between meaning and behavior). # The larger socio-politico-historical contextual effects on one’s individual assumptions. # The power relations deeply rooted in the dominant discourses in a field and their overpowering effect on different modes of thought. # The unavoidably context-dependent and subjective nature of all concepts, compared to objective systems of validity. # The importance of examining embedded assumptions and of concentrating on the association between idea and context. # The affirmation that appropriate theorizing is a certainty of our nature as language observers and directing theorists in the direction of improving awareness of their fundamental responsibility. # The assertion that the concept of efficacy, instead of objective validity should be the fulcrum in the evaluation of theory.

Application

Brown has noted the "tacit bias" in any observation, which is rooted in "assumptions on the nature of mind" that shape the research, and for Hanlan and Brown, theory does not arise from data alone. Crick has stated that it is impossible to pursue a difficult programme of research in neuroscience without some preconceived ideas, seen as inevitable by Churchland. Stein, Brailowsky and Will have opined that such preconceptions about the central nervous system have tended to hamper research in certain areas.

References

{{Neuroscience Epistemology Neuroscience Philosophy of mind