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1、PrefaceDanielJ.LevitinWhatIsCognition?Cognitionencompassesthescientificstudyofthehumanmindandhowitprocessesinformation;itfocusesononeofthemostdifficultofallmysteriesthathumanshaveaddressed.Themindisanenormouslycomplexsystemholdingauniquepositioninscience:bynecessity,wemustuse
2、themindtostudyitself,andsothefocusofstudyandtheinstrumentusedforstudyarerecursivelylinked.Thesheertenacityofhumancuriosityhasinourownlife-timesbroughtanswerstomanyofthemostchallengingscientificquestionswehavehadtheambitiontoask.Althoughmanymysteriesremain,atthedawnofthetwent
3、y-firstcentury,wefindthatwedounderstandmuchaboutthefun-damentallawsofchemistry,biology,andphysics;thestructureofspace-time,theoriginsoftheuniverse.Wehaveplausibletheoriesabouttheoriginsandnatureoflifeandhavemappedtheentirehumangenome.Wecannowturnourattentioninward,toexploring
4、thenatureofthought,andhowourmentallifecomestobewhatitis.Therearescientistsfromnearlyeveryfieldengagedinthispursuit.Physiciststrytounderstandhowphysicalmattercangiverisetothatineffablestatewecallconsciousness,andthedecidedlynonphysical‘‘mindstuff’’thatDescartesandotherphiloso
5、phershavearguedaboutforcenturies.Chemists,biologists,andneuroscientistsjointhemintryingtoexplicatethemechanismsbywhichneuronscommunicatewitheachotherandeventuallyformourthoughts,mem-ories,emotions,anddesires.Attheotherendofthespectrum,economistsstudyhowwebalancechoicesabout
6、limitednaturalandfinancialresources,andanthropologistsstudytheinfluenceofcultureonthoughtandtheformationofsocieties.Soatoneendwefindscientistsstudyingatomsandcells,attheotherendtherearescientistsstudyingentiregroupsofpeople.Cognitivepsycholo-giststendtostudytheindividual,andme
7、ntalsystemswithinindividualbrains,althoughideallywetrytostayinformedofwhatourcolleaguesaredoing.Socognitionisatrulyinterdisciplinaryendeavor,andthiscollectionofreadingsisintendedtoreflectthat.WhyNotaTextbook?ThisbookgrewoutofacourseItookattheMassachusettsInstituteofTech-nolo
8、gy(MIT)in1975,fromSusanCareyandMerrillGarrett(withoccasionalguestlecturesbyMaryPot
