Chapter 2 - What does it take to have a minimal mind?

Back to Main Page Chapter one Chapter three *** SUMMARY of Conclusions reached

The common fruit-fly Drosophila melanogaster. Does it have a mind of its own?
All rights reserved. Copyright Dr. Pez (Jesus Salas y Carlos Garrido), 1997-2004. Spain.

NOTE: For a more up-to-date and more sophisticated treatment of what a minimal mind is, the reader is welcome to read my online thesis.

Part A: How should we look for intentional agency in organisms?
Methodology for Investigating a Minimal Mind Appendix: Wolfram's neo-animism

Part B: What are the pre-requisites for intentional agency?
What criteria must an organism meet before we can say it has a minimal mind? Appendix: Case studies

Part C: Models of Intentional Agency in Animals
Four kinds of minimal minds Appendix: Examples

Part D: Higher Kinds of Learning in So-called "Primitive" Animals
Higher-order learning in insects and octopuses Appendix: Examples