Habits Quote by Raymond Tallis
““Let us begin by giving all proper respect to what neuroscience can tell us about ourselves: it reveals some of the most important conditions that are necessary for behavior and awareness. What neuroscience does not do, however, is provide a satisfactory account of the conditions that are sufficient for behavior and awareness. ... The pervasive yet mistaken idea that neuroscience does fully account for awareness and behavior is neuroscientism, an exercise in science-based faith. ... This confusion between necessary and sufficient conditions lies behind the encroachment of “neuroscientistic” discourse on academic work in the humanities...””
About This Quote
Source Essay: Neuroscience and the Humanities, 2015
Neuroscience explains necessary conditions for mind, but not sufficient ones, leading to overreach into humanities.
In simple terms: Neuroscience shows parts of mind, not whole.
Key Takeaway
Beware of reducing complex human experience to brain data.
Themes
science
humanities
reductionism
Mood
critical
analytical
Type
academic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- education curricula
- public discourse
- media reporting
- academic research
Key Concepts
philosophy of mind
epistemology
interdisciplinary studies
Questions to Reflect On
- What limits does reductionism impose?
- How can humanities complement neuroscience?
A Different Perspective
Neuroscience cannot fully capture subjective experience.
![“[...] the less you know, the less you will be aware of your ignorance. The familiar metaphor is that the wider the circle of our knowledge, the greater its contact with the unknown, and the more oppressive our feeling of cognitive inadequacy. By contrast, a small mind finds a small world to match…” quote by Raymond Tallis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a90/raymond-tallis-72119_ignorance_the-less-you-know-the-less-you-will-be-a_2743819.jpg)
