Abstract
Previous chapters have advanced various sources of evidence for the existence of nodes that play a role in both perception and action. Chapter 7 examines the functional issues. Why have mental nodes evolved? What functions do mental nodes serve?
The ultimate function of all neural analysers of sensory input is not mere description or classification, but the shaping of conditional readiness to reckon with the state of affairs betokened by that input. The main question to be answered by the sensory system is not ‘What is it?’ but ‘What does it signify for me?,’ or if you like, ‘So what?’
(D. G. MacKay, 1984, p. 262)
The message received may be subject to perceptual errors and confusions resulting from environmental noises, unfamiliarity with the speaker’s pronunciation and style, false expectations of the speaker’s intent, unintentional ambiguities in what the speaker is saying….
(Warren, 1982, p. 177)
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© 1987 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.
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MacKay, D.G. (1987). The Functions of Mental Nodes. In: The Organization of Perception and Action. Cognitive Science Series. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4754-8_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4754-8_7
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