Fundamentals of Cognitive Neuroscience - 2nd Edition

A Beginner's Guide

Nicole M. Gage | Bernard J. Baars

Comprehensive, yet accessible, this updated edition includes contents and features that are both academically rigorous and engaging, including a step-by-step introduction to the visible brain, new chapters on emerging topics in cognition research, and discussions of novel findings that highlight cognitive neuroscience's practical applications. Written by two leading experts in the field and thoroughly updated, this book remains an indispensable introduction to the study of cognition.

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In the Theater of Consciousness

The Workspace of the Mind

Bernard J. Baars

Understanding consciousness is perhaps the most difficult puzzle facing the sciences today. In the Theater of Consciousness offers an invaluable introduction to the field, brilliantly weaving together the various theories that have emerged as scientists continue their quest to uncover the profound mysteries of the mind--and of human nature itself.

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Fundamentals of Cognitive Neuroscience

A comprehensive and easy-to-follow guide to cognitive neuroscience.

Bernard J. Baars

Winner of a 2013 Most Promising New Textbook Award from the Text and Academic Authors Association, this book was written by two leading experts in the field to be highly accessible to undergraduates with limited neuroscience training. It covers all aspects of the field...

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Cognition, Brain, and Consciousness: Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience

2nd Edition

Bernard J. Baars | Nicole M. Gage

Provides students and readers with an overview of the study of the human brain and its cognitive development. It discusses brain molecules and their primary function, which is to help carry brain signals to and from the different parts of the human body. These molecules are also essential for understanding language, learning, perception, thinking, and other cognitive functions of our brain.

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A Cognitive Theory of Consciousness

Cambridge University Press, 1988

Bernard J. Baars

Bernard Baars suggests a way to specify empirical constraints on a theory of consciousness by contrasting well-established conscious phenomena - such as stimulus representations known to be attended, perceptual, and informative - with closely comparable unconscious ones - such as stimulus representations known to be preperceptual, unattended, or habituated. Adducing data to show that consciousness is associated with a kind of global workplace in the nervous system, and that several brain structures are known to behave in accordance with his theory, Baars helps to clarify many difficult problems.

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Cognition, Brain, and Consciousness: Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience

Bernard J. Baars | Nicole M. Gage

A textbook for psychology, neuroscience, pre-medical students, and everybody interested in the neuroscience of cognition.

A wave of new research is transforming our understanding of the human mind and brain. Many educational fields now require a basic understanding of the new topic of cognitive neuroscience. However, available textbooks are written more for biology audiences than for psychology and related majors. This text aims to bridge that gap. 

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Experimental Slips and Human Error: Exploring the Architecture of Volition

Cognition and Language: A Series in Psycholinguistics

Bernard J. Baars

Whereas most humans spend their time trying to get things right, psycholo­gists are perversely dedicated to error. The very concept of error presupposes a goal or criterion by comparison to which an error is an error; and goals bring in the foundation issues of control, motivation, and volition. Errors also seem to reveal the "natural joints" in perception, language, memory, and problem solving-revealing units that may otherwise be invisible.

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The Routledge Handbook of Consciousness

Contributed Chapter on Global Workspace Theory, Part II.

Bernard J. Baars 

Designed to complement and better explain primary sources, this volume is a valuable "first-stop" publication for undergraduate or graduate students enrolled in any course on "Consciousness," "Philosophy of Mind," or "Philosophy of Psychology," as well as a valuable handbook for researchers in these fields who want a useful reference to have close at hand. Part II is on specific "Contemporary Theories of Consciousness," with chapters on representational, information integration, global workspace, attention-based, and quantum theories.

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The Cognitive Revolution in Psychology

Bernard J. Baars

In the last quarter century, academic psychology has undergone a major intellectual shift of power: from the ruling tenets of behaviorism to those of cognitive theory....This book represents one of the first comprehensive attempts to explain this theoretical shift.

"The most enduring contribution of the book may be its challenge to cognitive scientists to return to their roots, to describe and explain consciousness. Without a decent theory of consciousness, cognitive science may be adrift. If that is so, then (this work) deserves to be read by many." 

- Contemporary Psychology

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{What a magnum opus! Bernard Baars fundamentally changed the scientific study of consciousness over 30 years ago and he has done it again in this stimulating update, proposing novel predictions and drawing on the latest research in cognitive science. This book should be on the bookshelf for anyone seriously interested in wrestling with the paradoxes and mysteries of human consciousness.
"Portrait of Scott Barry Kaufman for Endorsement of On Consciousness by Bernard Baars"
Scott Barry Kaufman, PhD
Humanistic Psychologist, Author of "Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization"
{This highly readable encyclopedic volume spans some thirty plus years of work by one of the cardinal figures in the modern scientific research on consciousness. It presents an evolving view of the Global Workspace Theory, arguably the most widely accepted scientific theory of consciousness today. Dr. Baars has been a tireless advocate for the importance of consciousness as a topic of serious scientific research. This volume is a befitting testament to his genius.
"Zoran Josipovic Portrait"
Zoran Josipovic, PhD
Principal Investigator & Cofounder, Nonduality Institute, Research associate at NYU Langone Medical Center and adjunct assistant professor for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience in the Department of Psychology, New York University
{The powerful core of Baars’ model of consciousness is the global workspace, a kind of central bulletin board. It allows scores of specialized mental subsystems (expert but narrow) to contribute to the resolution of novel problems. Baars is careful and thoughtful, and shows constant concern for the testability of his ideas.
"David Galin"
Dr. David Galin
Langley Porter Psychiatry Institute, Professor Emeritus, UCSF
{Over the past several decades, Bernard Baars has launched a new science to understand the human mind and the brain, with a novel approach of looking across scientific and philosophical disciplines to understand the elements that combine to form human consciousness. "On Consciousness: Science and Subjectivity" highlights Baars’ strongly scientific approach combined with his brilliant creativity as he forges new ways of thinking about ancient questions. It is a stunning achievement!
"Portrait of Nicole Gage"
Nicole Gage, PhD
Research Professor, Retired, Department of Cognitive Sciences, University of California, Irvine
{Bernard Baars enjoys a dual distinction: He is both one of the pioneers of the cognitive study of consciousness and currently one of its most important contributors. His work is solid, cleanly written, accessible, and based on a mass of compelling empirical findings, deftly integrated. To my knowledge, no one in this field since William James has achieved a better balance of inclusive scope and detailed application.
"Bruce Mangan Portrait"
Bruce Mangan
Senior Research Associate, University of California, Merced, (formally) Institute of Cognitive and Brain Studies, University of California, Berkeley
{Consciousness will not become acceptable to science without three things: empirical evidence that overcomes the consciousness deniers, a satisfying account of subjectivity, and a global understanding of the mind's staggering complexity. Bernard Baars is perhaps our most important voice on all three fronts, and On Consciousness: Science & Subjectivity raises a high bar for all future exploration in the field.
"Portrait of Deepak Chopra"
Deepak Chopra, MD
Author of METAHUMAN (Harmony)
{The sweep and readability of this book are remarkable. Ranging from cell physiology to cognitive states of mind, Baars shows himself to be a master of neurophenomenology from the ground up. In this rich book, On Consciousness: Science & Subjectivity, we are treated to a detailed exploration of the brain processes that undergird our ordinary day to day, moment to moment, ongoing conscious experience. Baars is brilliantly well versed in past writers who have explored human experience, from Aristotle to Marcel Proust, and on to a wide range of contemporary neuroscientists. One has the feeling that the shadow of William James falls across every page. As with James, Baars’ writes in an effortless and deeply thoughtful voice, populated by the kinds of details and reflections that mark a scientist who has spent a lifetime becoming intimately familiar with his topic.
"Portrait of Allen Leslie Combs"
Allan Leslie Combs, PhD
Director & Professor, CIIS Center for Consciousness Studies
{Eyebrows are no longer raised even among neuroscientists when the topic of consciousness is discussed, largely due to authors like Bernard Baars. Baars, the creator of the Global Workspace Theory (GWT) of consciousness, explains his influential theory in exquisite details in this new volume, along with many updates of his main writings. He takes a bird's eye view of the brain but with many exciting insights of its complex workings. An enjoyable read by an expert authority.
"Portrait of Gyorgy Buzsaki"
György Buzsáki, MD, PhD
Biggs Professor of Neuroscience, NYU School of Medicine, Author of Rhythms of the Brain; The Brain from Inside Out (OUP)
{No scholar understands consciousness as well as Bernard Baars, and few can express this understanding as lucidly. His Global Workspace Theory is practical and elegant, addressing both conscious and unconscious activity. If anyone thinks there is a "hard problem" in this field, they need to read "ON CONSCIOUSNESS" before they make that assumption. Dr. Baars' latest book is a magnificent achievement.
"Photo of Stanley Krippner"
Stanley Krippner, PhD
Professor of Psychology, Saybrook University
{Baars was just waaaay ahead of everyone else in approaching questions concerning consciousness as scientific questions. And he has done vastly more than metaphor-slinging philosophers to make progress on the topic. His preference for testable hypotheses as opposed to dead-end thought-experiments have made a major difference in shifting the topic to a secure knowledge base from which real progress can be made. His work is always insightful, careful, and trustworthy — virtues that have become increasingly elusive in philosophical approaches. This corpus is a stunning achievement.
"Image of Patricia Churchland"
Patricia Churchland, PhD
UC President's Professor of Philosophy Emerita, UCSD, Author of Touching a Nerve: The Self as Brain (Norton)
{The works of Bernard Baars collected here in "On Consciousness: Science and Subjectivity" are among the foundational texts of the scientific study of consciousness. Their influence in cognitive science and philosophy of mind is enormous, and their impact on my own thinking has been profound.
"Photo of Murray Shanahan"
Murray Shanahan, PhD
Professor of Cognitive Robotics, Dept of Computing, Imperial College London; Senior Research Scientist, DeepMind
{Global workspace theory has been a foundational concept in the modern science of consciousness and its more recent neural instantiation has enjoyed widespread and increasing support. This book by Bernard Baars, a pioneer in the field and originator of the theory, represents a landmark effort to comprehensively address, in an accessible way, the various dimensions of the global workspace, from its cognitive architecture to the living brain dynamics through which it is manifest. "On Consciousness" is an indispensable addition to the library of both students and experts who study consciousness.
"George Mashour at Desk"
George A. Mashour, MD, PhD
Director, Center for Consciousness Science, Professor of Anesthesiology, Neurosurgery, Neuroscience, and Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
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Read An Excerpt

Global Workspace Theory (GWT) began with this question: “How does a serial, integrated and very limited stream of consciousness emerge from a nervous system that is mostly unconscious, distributed, parallel and of enormous capacity?”

GWT is a widely used framework for the role of conscious and unconscious experiences in the functioning of the brain, as Baars first suggested in 1983.

A set of explicit assumptions that can be tested, as many of them have been. These updated works by Bernie Baars, the recipient of the 2019 Hermann von Helmholtz Life Contribution Award by International Neural Network Society form a coherent effort to organize a large and growing body of scientific evidence about conscious brains.

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