{"title":"Books by Jakob Hohwy","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9780199686735","title":"The Predictive Mind","description":"A new theory is taking hold in neuroscience. It is the theory that the brain is essentially a hypothesis-testing mechanism, one that attempts to minimise the error of its predictions about the sensory input it receives from the world. It is an attractive theory because powerful theoretical arguments support it, and yet it is at heart stunningly simple. Jakob Hohwy explains and explores this theory from the perspective of cognitive science and philosophy. The key argument throughout The Predictive Mind is that the mechanism explains the rich, deep, and multifaceted character of our conscious perception. It also gives a unified account of how perception is sculpted by attention, and how it depends on action. The mind is revealed as having a fragile and indirect relation to the world. Though we are deeply in tune with the world we are also strangely distanced from it.The first part of the book sets out how the theory enables rich, layered perception. The theory's probabilistic and statistical foundations are explained using examples from empirical research and analogies to different forms of inference. The second part uses the simple mechanism in an explanation of problematic cases of how we manage to represent, and sometimes misrepresent, the world in health as well as in mental illness. The third part looks into the mind, and shows how the theory accounts for attention, conscious unity, introspection, self and the privacy of our mental world.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56227124380021,"sku":"9780199686735","price":39.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780199686735_af92657e-81f8-4974-b574-47c6aa139339.jpg?v=1786032622"},{"product_id":"9780262553896","title":"The Self-Evidencing Agent","description":"\u003cb\u003eHow the concept of self-evidencing offers a philosophical principle for understanding mind and behavior, consciousness, value, wisdom, and meaning.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat is it to be a human individual, an agent? According to Jakob Hohwy, it is to “self-evidence,” to actively seek out sensory evidence for one’s own model of oneself and the world.\u003ci\u003e The Self-Evidencing Agent \u003c\/i\u003ebegins with a simple analysis of what it is for something to exist, then uses this starting point to understand how human agents perceive and make sense of the world, decide to act, and act of their own volition. The central notion of self-evidencing helps us to understand self, consciousness, as well as wisdom, meaning, and mindfulness.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSelf-evidencing occurs when organisms act in the world in ways that generate evidence for their existence; they evidence their model of the world and themselves. Hohwy offers a first-principles method for philosophical inquiry, intended to provide new answers to difficult philosophical questions, while casting light on the diversity of everyday experience, as well as our attempts to live well.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56367929065845,"sku":"9780262553896","price":62.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780262553896_c455a408-da61-4b6d-9ee4-5bb1b845da71.jpg?v=1786012941"},{"product_id":"mindfully-rational","title":"Mindfully Rational","description":"Mindfully Rational offers a new way to think about critical thinking in a world saturated with information, disagreement, and distraction. Good reasoning is not just a matter of knowing the rules of argument or evidence. It also depends on noticing what we are attending to, what we are defending, and how our habits, emotions, and social environments shape what seems obvious to us.   Drawing on philosophy, psychology, and contemplative science, the book shows how mindfulness can strengthen critical thinking without replacing careful thought. Mindfulness helps us pause before reacting, recognise defensive patterns, sit more comfortably with uncertainty, and engage more constructively with people who see things differently.   Through accessible explanations, real-world examples, and reflective exercises, Mindfully Rational develops practical tools for evaluating evidence, making better decisions, navigating group dynamics, avoiding overconfidence, and reasoning well with others. Written for general readers, professionals, educators, and students, it will appeal to anyone interested in clear thinking, better disagreement, and the cultivation of intellectual humility, open-mindedness, and wiser judgment.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":57502346248565,"sku":"9781041144267","price":36.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":57682883969397,"sku":"9781041144274","price":155.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781041144267.jpg?v=1792511783"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-jakob-hohwy.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}