Literature DB >> 19669418

Are the Gödel incompleteness theorems limitative results for the neurosciences?

Jeff Buechner1.   

Abstract

There are many kinds of limitative results in the sciences, some of which are philosophical. I am interested in examining one kind of limitative result in the neurosciences that is mathematical-a result secured by the Gödel incompleteness theorems. I will view the incompleteness theorems as independence results, develop a connection with independence results in set theory, and then argue that work in the neurosciences (as well as in molecular, systems and synthetic biology) may well avoid these mathematical limitative results. In showing this, I argue that demonstrating that one cannot avoid them is a computational task that is beyond the computational capacities of finitary minds. Along the way, I reformulate three philosophical claims about the nature of consciousness in terms of the Gödel incompleteness theorems and argue that these precise reformulations of the claims can be disarmed.

Entities:  

Year:  2010        PMID: 19669418      PMCID: PMC2791808          DOI: 10.1007/s10867-009-9160-1

Source DB:  PubMed          Journal:  J Biol Phys        ISSN: 0092-0606            Impact factor:   1.365


  3 in total

1.  Random graphs with arbitrary degree distributions and their applications.

Authors:  M E Newman; S H Strogatz; D J Watts
Journal:  Phys Rev E Stat Nonlin Soft Matter Phys       Date:  2001-07-24

2.  Global optimization of cerebral cortex layout.

Authors:  Christopher Cherniak; Zekeria Mokhtarzada; Raul Rodriguez-Esteban; Kelly Changizi
Journal:  Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A       Date:  2004-01-13       Impact factor: 11.205

3.  Component placement optimization in the brain.

Authors:  C Cherniak
Journal:  J Neurosci       Date:  1994-04       Impact factor: 6.167

  3 in total

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