N. Katherine Hayles is known for breaking new ground at the
intersection of the sciences and the humanities. In Unthought, she
once again bridges disciplines by revealing how we think without
thinking—how we use cognitive processes that are inaccessible to
consciousness yet necessary for it to function. Marshalling fresh
insights from neuroscience, cognitive science, cognitive biology, and
literature, Hayles expands our understanding of cognition and
demonstrates that it involves more than consciousness alone.
Cognition, as Hayles defines it, is applicable not only to
nonconscious processes in humans but to all forms of life, including
unicellular organisms and plants. Startlingly, she also shows that
cognition operates in the sophisticated information-processing
abilities of technical systems: when humans and cognitive technical
systems interact, they form “cognitive assemblages”—as found in
urban traffic control, drones, and the trading algorithms of finance
capital, for instance—and these assemblages are transforming life on
earth. The result is what Hayles calls a “planetary cognitive
ecology,” which includes both human and technical actors and which
poses urgent questions to humanists and social scientists alike. At a
time when scientific and technological advances are bringing
far-reaching aspects of cognition into the public eye, Unthought
reflects deeply on our contemporary situation and moves us toward a
more sustainable and flourishing environment for all beings.
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The Power of the Cognitive Nonconscious
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780226447919
Publisert
2018
Utgave
1. utgave
Utgiver
University of Chicago Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter