Concepts: How the Brain Constructs Reality, Emotional Experience and Who You Are - w/ Nicholas Shea

Ever wonder why you can recognise your friend's face instantly but struggle to remember where you put your keys? Your brain is running the most sophisticated learning system ever created, and most of us have no clue how it actually works. Nicholas Shea is an Oxford and King's College Researcher working in philosophy of mind, cognitive neuroscience and artificial intelligence. He breaks down the fascinating psychology behind how we build concepts in our minds. Think of concepts as mental shortcuts - when you see a dog, you don't analyse four legs, fur, and a tail. Your brain instantly accesses everything you know about dogs. We dissect these fundamental building blocks of learning into how the brain actually works and learns, and build mastery. Three key takeaways: What builds basic concepts into subject mastery? How do emotions inform decision-making? The real difference between deliberate practice and passive learning ------- NEW SHOW - How to Change the World Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players: Spotify - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Apple - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Can't find it on your player? RSS feed - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ------- Nicholas Shea Nick & his work - https://www.nicholasshea.co.uk/ Book - Concepts at The Interface - https://philpapers.org/rec/SHECAT-11 Paper - Concepts as Plug and Play Devices - https://www.nicholasshea.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Shea_22_Concepts_plug-and-play_RSTB_OA.pdf Recommended Books "Consciousness Explained" - Daniel Dennet Metazoa : Animal minds and the birth of consciousness” - Peter Godfrey Smith "Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Origins of Consciousness” -Peter Godfrey Smith "The Pleistocene Social Contract" - Kim Sterelny Helen Steward - Article - Do animals have free will - https://philosophersmag.com/do-animals-have-free-will/ UPGRADE to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Premium⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: 🏖️ Ad-free listening 🤘 Support the show 🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content 💬 Community Discord ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠GrowthMindset.Supercast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in Touch 👋 Free Call - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Schedule Link⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset 📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com Growth Mindset Psychology: Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement. 📺 Watch - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube (Growth Mindset)⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🛜 Website - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Growth Mindset⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement Episode: The Building Blocks of Learning and Mastery in the Brain - w/ Nicholas Shea Chapters: 00:00 How does your mind really work? 03:21 Playing with Concepts 05:00 Overview of Concepts in Psychology 06:14 Building and Storing Concepts 06:30 Concept Learning in Adults 07:59 Concept Acquisition in Children 08:46 Motor Skills and Conceptual Thinking 09:29 Automatic vs. Deliberate Thinking 11:00 Richness and Accessibility of Concepts 13:56 Cognitive Shortcuts and Biases 15:09 Narration on how media affects our thoughts 17:27 The Frame Problem in AI 22:25 Emotions in Decision Making 26:17 Animal Cognition and Emotions 29:14 Neurotransmitters and Learning 30:44 Philosophy methods and experimentation 31:32 Interdisciplinary Approach in Philosophy 33:13 Practical Implications of Abstract Research 34:29 Challenges in Applying Theoretical Insights 37:54 Recommended Books and Final Thoughts 39:45 Books Repeated 40:34 Take-home ideas 42:27 How to change the world podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices