Re: Difference between cognition and perception? (Andrew Bell )

Subject: Re: Difference between cognition and perception?
From:    Andrew Bell  <andrew.bell(at)ANU.EDU.AU>
Date:    Wed, 14 Apr 2004 10:19:58 +1000

There is an interesting recent paper by Rensink that distinguishes people's
ability to "see" something explicitly and "feel" that something in the
visual arena has changed. Rensink calls this mode of perception 'mindsight'
(in analogy with blindsight) and it gives a good example of how, in about
30% of normal people, visual cognition can take place without visual qualia.
He mentions audition, and says that a similar effect may occur: an event
might generate a feeling of something having occurred without supplying a
specific sound qualia.

Could people on the list give examples where this appears to have happened?


Andrew.
______


R.A. Rensink (2004). Visual sensing without seeing. Psychological Science
15, 27-32




>>> pallier <pallier(at)LSCP.EHESS.FR> 5:45:17 am Wednesday, 14 April 2004
>>>
Woojay Jeon wrote:

>
> I am wondering if anyone can clarify the exact difference between
> "cognition" and "perception", at least in terms of acoustics, and also
> provide some examples illustrating the difference?


My opinion is that "perception" and "cognition" are not very useful
concepts in information processing models.

Of course, many models of the mind roughly distinguish between input
modules, a central "executive" system, and "output systems". In this
type of models, one may want to label 'perception' the processes
implemented by the input modules, and 'cognition' the processes
implemented by the central system. Yet, the real job of psychologists is
to describe the processes and representations realized by the mind/brain
(I make this statement after having wasted quite a bit of time trying to
define precisely "perception" years ago... I would like to know if some
disagree).

Then, there is the question of consciousness.One may want to call
'Perception' the process which generates the qualia associated with an
oject. (but subliminal perception generates no qualia...). Consciouness
has become a "hot topic" during the last years, but I do not know if
there are convicing IP models of qualia. Maybe your post will start an
interesting discussion on this topic.

Christophe Pallier