TL:DR — Public lecture by Neurophilosopher Patricia Churchland on “The Brains Behind Morality”
Speaker: Dr. Patricia Churchland
Date and Time: Thursday May 30th, 7:00pm
Location: CSE2 G20
Title: The Brains Behind Morality
Abstract: Morality is a social behavior seen in mammals, including humans, that depends on an interlocking brain organization shaped by four factors: (1) caring (rooted in attachment to kin and kith, and the pain of isolation), (2) recognition of others’ psychological states (goals, feelings, needs); (3) learning social practices that emerges from the interactions of the reward system, hippocampus, and cortex (4) problem-solving in a social context (figuring out what modifications to a social practices serve stability and prosperity). Between species, the importance of these factors can vary. Social benefits are accompanied by social demands; we have to get along, but not put up with too much. Hence impulse control — being aggressive or compassionate or indulgent at the right time — is hugely advantageous. In hominins, the greatly expanded prefrontal cortex probably aided self-control, as well as problem-solving skills in both social and nonsocial domains, and augmented by the capacity for language. For most of our 300,000 years on the planet, hominin groups were small and moral practices were part of the shared tradition, encapsulated in habits as well as in songs, stories, and rituals. With the advent of agriculture about 10,000 years ago and the formation of much larger groups of humans, writing of laws became a tool to ensure everyone knew what was expected. Outstanding questions include how to foster cooperation when groups are very large and national self-interest is strong.
Bio: For decades, Patricia Churchland has contributed to the fields of philosophy of neuroscience, philosophy of the mind and neuroethics. Her research has centered on the interface between neuroscience and philosophy with a current focus on the association of morality and the social brain. A professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of California, San Diego and adjunct professor at the Salk Institute, Pat holds degrees from Oxford University, the University of Pittsburg and the University of British Columbia. She has been awarded the MacArthur Prize, The Rossi Prize for Neuroscience and the Prose Prize for Science. She has authored multiple pioneering books, her most recent being Touching a Nerve. She has served as President of the American Philosophical Association and the Society for Philosophy and Psychology. Pat lives in Solana Beach, California, with her husband Paul, a neurophilosopher, and their golden retrievers Duff and Farley. They have two children, Anne and Mark, both neuroscientists.