Andy Clark The Extended Mind Analysis

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Critical Analysis of the Extended Mind The concept of extended cognition is introduced in Andy Clark and David Chalmers’ article “The Extended Mind”. In it, Clark explains that the idea of extended cognition deals with the notion that external objects and interactions play a major role in helping the cognitive process. In this essay, I will critically examine Clark’s idea of extended cognition and how it pertains to real life technologies. Introducing this concept, Clark begins by asking the question, “Where does the mind stop and the rest of the world begin?” (7). Two ways of approaching this question is physically, where there is the boundary of skin and skull, or by way of words, essentially arguing that “this externalism about meaning carries over into an externalism about mind” (7). However, Clark takes a different approach and proposes a different type of active externalism. In active externalism, cognitive process are not held in a closed system, but rather, occurs when …show more content…
For instance, in Neural Biofeedback, biofeedback uses real-time EEG or fMRI to illustrate brain activity. Oftentimes, the main goal is to control the central nervous actions. Some individuals or medical practices use Neural Biofeedback as an alternative therapy that can help solve health issues such as high blood pressure, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), migraine headaches, and even depression. According to Dr. Inna Khazan, a biofeedback practitioner at Harvard Medical School, “it works by exercising and rebalancing the person's autonomic nervous system, helping the body to increase arousal when it is appropriate and put on the brakes when that is most helpful” (Rogers, “”Biofeedback and Depression). Especially when the health issue is a cognitive one, such as depression, Neural Biofeedback can help enhance the self-regulatory skill that is usually

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