Jump to content

Donald D. Hoffman: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
→Work: Retitling the section more accurately -- it does not cover all of Hoffman's work
Updated to emeritus (https://www.cogsci.uci.edu/people/emeritus.php), and deleted joint affiliations that are no longer present (Philosophy https://www.humanities.uci.edu/philosophy/faculty, LPS https://www.lps.uci.edu/people/affiliated.php, Computer Science https://ics.uci.edu/people/?filter%5Bemployee_type%5D=1093)
 
(43 intermediate revisions by 31 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
⚫
{{Short description|American cognitive psychologist and popular science author}}

{{Use American English|date=December 2021}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2021}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}}

⚫
{{short description|American cognitive psychologist and popular science author}}
{{BLP sources|date=February 2019}}
{{BLP sources|date=February 2019}}

{{Infobox scientist
{{Infobox scientist
|name = Donald D. Hoffman
| name = Donald D. Hoffman
|image = Donald Hoffman.jpg
| image = Donald Hoffman.jpg
|image_size =
| image_size =
|alt =
| alt =
|caption =
| caption =
|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|12|29}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|12|29}}
|birth_place = [[San Antonio]], Texas, USA
| birth_place = [[San Antonio]], [[Texas]], [[United States]]
|death_date =
| death_date =
|death_place =
| death_place =
|residence =
| residence =
|religion =
| religion =
|nationality =
| nationality =
|ethnicity =
| ethnicity =
|fields = [[Cognitive science]]
| fields = [[Cognitive science]]
|workplaces =
| workplaces =
|alma_mater = [[University of California at Los Angeles|UCLA]] (B.A. 1978)<br/>[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|M.I.T.]] (PhD 1983)
| alma_mater = [[University of California, Los Angeles]] (B.A. 1978)<br />[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (PhD 1983)
|doctoral_advisor =
| doctoral_advisor =
|academic_advisors =
| academic_advisors =
|doctoral_students =
| doctoral_students =
|notable_students =
| notable_students =
|known_for =
| known_for =
|influences =
| influences =
|influenced =
| influenced =
|awards =
| awards =
|signature = <!--(filename only)-->
| signature = <!-- File name only. -->
|signature_alt =
| signature_alt =
|footnotes =
| footnotes =
}}
}}


'''Donald David Hoffman''' (born December 29, 1955) is an American [[cognitive psychologist]] and popular science author. He is a professor in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the [[University of California, Irvine]], with joint appointments in the Department of Philosophy, the Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, and the School of Computer Science.
'''Donald David Hoffman''' (born December 29, 1955) is an American [[cognitive psychologist]] and [[popular science]] author. He is a professor emeritus in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the [[University of California, Irvine]].


Hoffman studies consciousness, visual perception and evolutionary psychology using mathematical models and psychophysical experiments. His research subjects include facial attractiveness, the recognition of shape, the perception of motion and color, the evolution of perception, and the [[mind–body problem]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=D. D. |last2=Richards |first2=W. A. |date=December 1984 |title=Parts of recognition |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/0010027784900222 |journal=Cognition |language=en |volume=18 |issue=1-3 |pages=65–96 |doi=10.1016/0010-0277(84)90022-2}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |date=April 1, 1997 |title=Salience of visual parts |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010027796007913 |journal=Cognition |language=en |volume=63 |issue=1 |pages=29–78 |doi=10.1016/S0010-0277(96)00791-3 |issn=0010-0277}}</ref> He has co-authored two technical books: ''Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory of Perception'' (1989) offers a theory of [[consciousness]] and its relationship to physics; ''Automotive Lighting and Human Vision'' (2005) applies vision science to vehicle lighting. His book ''Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See'' (1998) presents the modern science of visual perception to a broad audience. His 2015 [[TED Talk]], "Do we see reality as it is?" argues that our perceptions have evolved to hide reality from us.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}}
Hoffman studies [[consciousness]], [[visual perception]], and [[evolutionary psychology]] using mathematical models and psychophysical experiments. His research subjects include facial attractiveness, the recognition of shape, the perception of motion and color, the [[evolution]] of perception, and the [[mind–body problem]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Hoffman|first1=D. D.|last2=Richards|first2=W. A.|date=December 1984|title=Parts of recognition|url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/0010027784900222|journal=Cognition|language=en|volume=18|issue=1–3|pages=65–96|doi=10.1016/0010-0277(84)90022-2|pmid=6543164|s2cid=6397710|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|date=April 1, 1997|title=Salience of visual parts|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010027796007913|journal=Cognition|language=en|volume=63|issue=1|pages=29–78|doi=10.1016/S0010-0277(96)00791-3|issn=0010-0277|last1=Hoffman|first1=Donald D.|last2=Singh|first2=Manish|pmid=9187064|s2cid=14845190|url-access=subscription}}</ref> He has co-authored two technical books; ''Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory of Perception'' (1989) offers a theory of [[consciousness]] and its relationship to physics; ''Automotive Lighting and Human Vision'' (2005) applies vision science to vehicle lighting. His book ''Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See'' (1998) presents the modern science of visual perception to a broad audience.


His 2015 [[TED Talk]], "Do we see reality as it is?" argues that our perceptions have [[evolution|evolved]] to hide reality from us.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}} He followed this up with a book in 2019, "The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes".
⚫
==Biography==
⚫
[[File:Donald Hoffman- Extra footage 1-VPRO-The Mind of the Universe.ogv|thumb|left|Donald Hoffman is being interviewed for the Dutch TV-show The Mind of the Universe.]]


⚫
== Biography ==
⚫
Hoffman received a Bachelor of Arts degree in quantitative psychology from the [[University of California at Los Angeles]] (UCLA) in 1978, and earned his Doctorate of Philosophy in computational psychology at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MIT) in 1983 under [[David Marr (neuroscientist)|David Marr]] and [[Whitman Richards]]. He was briefly a Research Scientist at the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of MIT, and then became an assistant professor at the University of California at Irvine (UCI) in 1983. He has remained on the faculty of UCI since then, with a sabbatical during the 1995-1996 academic year at the Zentrum für Interdisziplinäre Forschung of Bielefeld University.{{citation needed|date=June 2019}}
⚫
[[File:Donald Hoffman- Extra footage 1-VPRO-The Mind of the Universe.ogv|thumb|left|Donald Hoffman being interviewed for the Dutch TV-show The Mind of the Universe.]]

⚫
Hoffman received a Bachelor of Arts degree in quantitative psychology from the [[University of California at Los Angeles]] (UCLA) in 1978, and earned his Doctorate of Philosophy in computational psychology at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MIT) in 1983 under [[David Marr (neuroscientist)|David Marr]] and [[Whitman Richards]]. He was briefly a Research Scientist at the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of MIT, and then became an assistant professor at the University of California at Irvine (UCI) in 1983. He has remained on the faculty of UCI since then, with a sabbatical during the 1995-1996 academic year at the [[Center for Interdisciplinary Research, Bielefeld|Zentrum für Interdisziplinäre Forschung of Bielefeld University]].<ref>[https://www.cogsci.uci.edu/~ddhoff/cvddh.pdf Donald D Hoffman CV] ''www.cogsci.uci.edu''</ref>
[[File:Donald Hoffman IMPROVED 2.tif|thumb|Donald D. Hoffman]]
[[File:Donald Hoffman IMPROVED 2.tif|thumb|Donald D. Hoffman]]


==Work on consciousness==
== Work on consciousness ==
⚫
=== Introduction and overview ===

⚫
===Introduction and overview===
Hoffman notes that the commonly held view that brain activity causes conscious experience has, so far, proved to be intractable in terms of scientific explanation. Hoffman proposes a solution to the [[hard problem of consciousness]] by adopting the converse view that consciousness causes brain activity and, in fact, creates all objects and properties of the physical world. To this end, Hoffman has developed and combined two theories: the "multimodal user interface" (MUI) theory of perception and "conscious realism".
Hoffman notes that the commonly held view that brain activity causes conscious experience has, so far, proved to be intractable in terms of scientific explanation. Hoffman proposes a solution to the [[hard problem of consciousness]] by adopting the converse view that consciousness causes brain activity and, in fact, creates all objects and properties of the physical world. To this end, Hoffman has developed and combined two theories: the "multimodal user interface" (MUI) theory of perception and "conscious realism".


===Multimodal user interface (MUI) theory===
=== Multimodal user interface (MUI) theory ===
MUI theory<ref name="auto">{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |date=September 1, 2010 |title=Sensory Experiences as Cryptic Symbols of a Multimodal User Interface |journal=Activitas Nervosa Superior |language=en |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=95–104 |doi=10.1007/BF03379572 |issn=1802-9698 |doi-access=free}}</ref> states that "perceptual experiences do not match or approximate properties of the objective world, but instead provide a simplified, species-specific, user interface to that world." Hoffman argues that conscious beings have not evolved to perceive the world as it actually is but have evolved to perceive the world in a way that maximizes "fitness payoffs". Hoffman uses the metaphor of a computer desktop and icons - the icons of a computer desktop provide a functional interface so that the user does not have to deal with the underlying programming and electronics in order to use the computer efficiently. Similarly, objects that we perceive in time and space are metaphorical icons that act as our interface to the world and enable us to function as efficiently as possible without having to deal with the overwhelming amount of data underlying reality.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gefter |first=Amanda |title=The Evolutionary Argument Against Reality |url=https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-evolutionary-argument-against-reality-20160421/ |access-date=December 8, 2019 |website=Quanta Magazine}}</ref>
MUI theory<ref name="auto">{{Cite journal|last=Hoffman|first=Donald D.|date=September 1, 2010|title=Sensory Experiences as Cryptic Symbols of a Multimodal User Interface|journal=Activitas Nervosa Superior|language=en|volume=52|issue=3|pages=95–104|doi=10.1007/BF03379572|issn=1802-9698|doi-access=free}}</ref> states that "perceptual experiences do not match or approximate properties of the objective world, but instead provide a simplified, species-specific, user interface to that world." Hoffman argues that conscious beings have not evolved to perceive the world as it actually is but have evolved to perceive the world in a way that maximizes "[[fitness (biology)|fitness]] payoffs". Hoffman uses the metaphor of a computer desktop and icons - the icons of a computer desktop provide a functional interface so that the user does not have to deal with the underlying programming and electronics in order to use the computer efficiently. Similarly, objects that we perceive in time and space are metaphorical icons that act as our interface to the world and enable us to function as efficiently as possible without having to deal with the overwhelming amount of data underlying reality.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gefter|first=Amanda|title=The Evolutionary Argument Against Reality|url=https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-evolutionary-argument-against-reality-20160421/|access-date=December 8, 2019|website=Quanta Magazine|date=April 21, 2016}}</ref>
This theory implies [[Epiphysicalism]], i.e., physical objects, such as quarks and brains and stars are constructed by conscious agents but such physical objects have no causal power.<ref name="auto" />
This theory implies [[epiphysicalism]], i.e., physical objects, such as quarks and brains and stars are constructed by conscious agents but such physical objects have no causal power.<ref name="auto" />
While [[Panpsychism]] claims that Rocks, mountains, the moon, etc. are conscious, "Conscious Realism" in this theory (Multimodal user interface theory) does not. Instead, what it claims is all such objects are icons within the user interface of a conscious agent, but that does not entail the
While [[panpsychism]] claims that rocks, mountains, the moon, etc. are conscious, "Conscious Realism" in this theory (Multimodal user interface theory) does not. Instead, what it claims is all such objects are icons within the user interface of a conscious agent, but that does not entail the
claim that the objects themselves are conscious.<ref name="auto" />
claim that the objects themselves are conscious.<ref name="auto" />


=== The interface theory of perception ===
=== The interface theory of perception ===
The interface theory of perception is the idea that our perceptual experiences don't necessarily map onto what exists in the reality of itself. This is in contrast to the popular view of [[Critical realism (philosophy of perception)|critical realism]] which argues that some of our perceptual experiences map onto the reality of the natural world. In the critical realist's view, [[Primary/secondary quality distinction|primary qualities]] like height and weight represent actual qualities of reality, whereas secondary qualities don't. Within the interface theory of perception, neither primary nor secondary qualities necessarily map onto reality.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |last2=Singh |first2=Manish |last3=Prakash |first3=Chetan |date=December 1, 2015 |title=The Interface Theory of Perception |url=https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8 |journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review |language=en |volume=22 |issue=6 |pages=1480–1506 |doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8 |issn=1531-5320 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
The interface theory of perception is the idea that our perceptual experiences don't necessarily map onto what exists in the reality of itself. This is in contrast to the popular view of [[Critical realism (philosophy of perception)|critical realism]], which argues that some of our perceptual experiences map onto the reality of the natural world. In the critical realist's view, [[Primary/secondary quality distinction|primary qualities]] like height and weight represent actual qualities of reality, whereas secondary qualities don't. Within the interface theory of perception, neither primary nor secondary qualities necessarily map onto reality.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Hoffman|first1=Donald D.|last2=Singh|first2=Manish|last3=Prakash|first3=Chetan|date=December 1, 2015|title=The Interface Theory of Perception|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|language=en|volume=22|issue=6|pages=1480–1506|doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8|pmid=26384988|issn=1531-5320|doi-access=free}}</ref>


===Conscious Realism===
=== Conscious realism ===
Conscious Realism is described as a non-physicalist [[monism]] which holds that consciousness is the primary reality and the physical world emerges from that. The objective world consists of conscious agents and their experiences. "What exists in the objective world, independent of my perceptions, is a world of conscious agents, not a world of unconscious particles and fields. Those particles and fields are icons in the MUIs of conscious agents but are not themselves fundamental denizens of the objective world. Consciousness is fundamental."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald |date=2008 |title=Conscious Realism and the Mind-Body Problem |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/HOFCRA |journal=Mind and Matter |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=87–121}} [http://www.cogsci.uci.edu/~ddhoff/ConsciousRealism2.pdf]</ref>{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}}
Conscious [[Philosophical realism|realism]] is described as a non-[[Physicalism|physicalist]] [[monism]] which holds that consciousness is the primary reality and the physical world emerges from that. The objective world consists of conscious agents and their experiences. "What exists in the objective world, independent of my perceptions, is a world of conscious agents, not a world of unconscious particles and fields. Those particles and fields are icons in the MUIs of conscious agents but are not themselves fundamental denizens of the objective world. Consciousness is fundamental."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hoffman|first=Donald|date=2008|title=Conscious Realism and the Mind-Body Problem|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/HOFCRA|journal=Mind and Matter|volume=6|issue=1|pages=87–121}} [http://www.cogsci.uci.edu/~ddhoff/ConsciousRealism2.pdf ConsciousRealism2 at cogsci.uci.edu]</ref>{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}}


===Perception of the physical world is a byproduct of consciousness===
=== Perception of the physical world is a byproduct of consciousness ===
Together, MUI theory and Conscious Realism form the foundation for an overall theory that the physical world is not objective but is an [[epiphenomenon]] (secondary phenomenon) caused by consciousness. Hoffman has said that some form of reality may exist, but maybe completely different from the reality our brains model and perceive.<ref>{{Cite web |title=#178 - The Reality Illusion |url=https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/178-reality-illusion |access-date=December 24, 2021 |website=Sam Harris}}</ref> Reality may not be made of space-time and physical objects.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}} Through supposing that consciousness is fundamental, Hoffman provides a possible solution to the [[hard problem of consciousness]], which wrestles with the notion of why we seem to have conscious immediate experiences, and how sentient beings could arise from seemingly non-sentient matter. Hoffman argues that consciousness is more fundamental than the objects and patterns perceived by consciousness.<ref>{{YouTube|id=ZKoowV2i--U|title=The Hard Problem of Consciousness {{!}} Donald Hoffman}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=November 2021}} We have conscious experiences because consciousness is posited as a fundamental aspect of reality. The problem of how sentient beings arise from seemingly non-sentient matter is also addressed because it alters the notion of non-sentient matter. Perceptions of non-sentient matter are mere byproducts of consciousness and don't necessarily reflect reality. This means the causal notion of non-sentient matter developing into sentient beings is up to question.
Together, MUI theory and Conscious Realism form the foundation for an overall theory that the physical world is not objective but is an [[epiphenomenon]] (secondary phenomenon) caused by consciousness. Hoffman has said that some form of reality may exist, but may be completely different from the reality our brains model and perceive.<ref>{{Cite web|title=#178 - The Reality Illusion|url=https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/178-reality-illusion|access-date=December 24, 2021|website=Sam Harris}}</ref> Reality may not be made of space-time and physical objects.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}} Through supposing that consciousness is fundamental, Hoffman provides a possible solution to the [[hard problem of consciousness]], which wrestles with the notion of why we seem to have conscious immediate experiences, and how sentient beings could arise from seemingly non-sentient matter. Hoffman argues that consciousness is more fundamental than the objects and patterns perceived by consciousness.<ref>{{YouTube|id=ZKoowV2i--U|title=The Hard Problem of Consciousness {{!}} Donald Hoffman}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=November 2021}} We have conscious experiences because consciousness is posited as a fundamental aspect of reality. The problem of how sentient beings arise from seemingly non-sentient matter is also addressed because it alters the notion of non-sentient matter. Perceptions of non-sentient matter are mere byproducts of consciousness and don't necessarily reflect reality. This means the causal notion of non-sentient matter developing into sentient beings is open to question.


===Implications from Evolution===
=== Implications from evolution ===
Hoffman argues that natural selection is necessarily directed toward fitness payoffs and that organisms develop internal models of reality that increase these fitness payoffs. This means that organisms develop a perception of the world that is directed towards fitness, and not of reality. This led him to argue that evolution has developed sensory systems in organisms that have high fitness but don't offer a correct perception of reality.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}}{{sfn|Hoffman|2019}}
Hoffman argues that [[natural selection]] is necessarily directed toward [[fitness (biology)|fitness]] payoffs and that organisms develop internal models of reality that increase these fitness payoffs. This means that organisms develop a perception of the world that is directed towards fitness, and not of reality. This led him to argue that evolution has developed sensory systems in organisms that have high fitness but don't offer a correct perception of reality.{{sfn|Hoffman|2015}}{{sfn|Hoffman|2019}}


==See also==
== Books ==
*''Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory of Perception'' (1989)
*''Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See'' (1998)
*''Automotive Lighting and Human Vision'' (2005)
*''The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes'' (2019)

== See also ==
* [[Idealism]]
* [[Idealism]]
* [[Panpsychism]]
* [[Panpsychism]]
* [[Yogachara]]
* [[Yogachara]]


==References==
== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Reflist|30em}}


== Sources ==
== Sources ==
*{{Citation |last=Hoffman |first=Donald |title=Do We See Reality As It Is? |url=https://www.ted.com/talks/donald_hoffman_do_we_see_reality_as_it_is |year=2015 |language=en |access-date=2021-12-25}}
* {{Citation|last=Hoffman|first=Donald|title=Do We See Reality As It Is?|url=https://www.ted.com/talks/donald_hoffman_do_we_see_reality_as_it_is|year=2015|language=en|access-date=2021-12-25}}
*{{Cite book |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1054001128 |title=The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth From Our Eyes |year=2019 |isbn=978-0-393-25469-3 |edition=1st |location=New York |oclc=1054001128}}
* {{Cite book|last=Hoffman|first=Donald D.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1054001128|title=The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth From Our Eyes|year=2019|isbn=978-0-393-25469-3|edition=1st|location=New York|oclc=1054001128}}
* {{Cite book |title=Automotive lighting and human vision |publisher=Springer |others=Wördenweber, Burkard. |year=2007 |isbn=9783540366973 |location=Berlin |oclc=185022114}}
* {{Cite book|title=Automotive lighting and human vision|publisher=Springer|others=Wördenweber, Burkard.|year=2007|isbn=9783540366973|location=Berlin|oclc=185022114}}
* {{Cite book |last=Bennett |first=Bruce M. |title=Observer mechanics : a formal theory of perception |date=1989 |publisher=Academic Press |others=Hoffman, Donald D., Prakash, Chetan. |isbn=0120886359 |location=San Diego |oclc=19590702}}
* {{Cite book|last=Bennett|first=Bruce M.|title=Observer mechanics : a formal theory of perception|date=1989|publisher=Academic Press|others=Hoffman, Donald D., Prakash, Chetan.|isbn=0120886359|location=San Diego|oclc=19590702}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald |year=2008 |title=Conscious Realism and the Mind-Body Problem |url=https://philpapers.org/rec/HOFCRA |journal=Mind and Matter |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=87–121}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Hoffman|first=Donald|year=2008|title=Conscious Realism and the Mind-Body Problem|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/HOFCRA|journal=Mind and Matter|volume=6|issue=1|pages=87–121}}
* {{Cite book |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |url=https://archive.org/details/visualintelligen00hoff |title=Visual intelligence : how we create what we see |publisher=W.W. Norton |year=1998 |isbn=0393046699 |edition=1st |location=New York |oclc=38542585 |url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book|last=Hoffman|first=Donald D.|url=https://archive.org/details/visualintelligen00hoff|title=Visual intelligence : how we create what we see|publisher=W.W. Norton|year=1998|isbn=0393046699|edition=1st|location=New York|oclc=38542585|url-access=registration}}
*{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |last2=Singh |first2=Manish |last3=Prakash |first3=Chetan |date=December 2015 |title=Probing the interface theory of perception: Reply to commentaries |url=http://link.springer.com/10.3758/s13423-015-0931-3 |journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review |language=en |volume=22 |issue=6 |pages=1551–1576 |doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0931-3 |issn=1069-9384}}
* {{Cite journal|last1=Hoffman|first1=Donald D.|last2=Singh|first2=Manish|last3=Prakash|first3=Chetan|date=December 2015|title=Probing the interface theory of perception: Reply to commentaries|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|language=en|volume=22|issue=6|pages=1551–1576|doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0931-3|pmid=26424222|s2cid=30638235|issn=1069-9384|doi-access=free}}
*{{Cite journal |last=Hoffman |first=Donald D. |last2=Singh |first2=Manish |last3=Prakash |first3=Chetan |date=December 2015 |title=The Interface Theory of Perception |url=http://link.springer.com/10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8 |journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review |language=en |volume=22 |issue=6 |pages=1480–1506 |doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8 |issn=1069-9384}}
* {{Cite journal|last1=Hoffman|first1=Donald D.|last2=Singh|first2=Manish|last3=Prakash|first3=Chetan|date=December 2015|title=The Interface Theory of Perception|journal=Psychonomic Bulletin & Review|language=en|volume=22|issue=6|pages=1480–1506|doi=10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8|pmid=26384988|s2cid=2071376|issn=1069-9384|doi-access=free}}
* Hoffman Donald D,; Prakash, Chetan; Chattopadhyay, Swapan (May 2023) [https://sites.socsci.uci.edu/~ddhoff/Hoffman_IONS_Proposal.pdf Conscious Agents and the Subatomic World]


== External links ==
== External links ==
*[http://www.sciencechannel.com/tv-shows/through-the-wormhole/can-we-handle-the-truth-2/ Can we handle the truth?, Through the Wormhole With Morgan Freeman. 2015.]
* [http://www.sciencechannel.com/tv-shows/through-the-wormhole/can-we-handle-the-truth-2/ Can we handle the truth?, Through the Wormhole With Morgan Freeman. 2015.]
*[https://www.closertotruth.com/series/consciousness-ultimate-reality#video-2414 Is Consciousness Ultimate Reality?, Closer To Truth, PBS. 2013.]
* [https://www.closertotruth.com/series/consciousness-ultimate-reality#video-2414 Is Consciousness Ultimate Reality?, Closer To Truth, PBS. 2013.]
*[https://www.ted.com/talks/the_ted_interview_donald_hoffman_has_a_radical_new_theory_on_how_we_experience_reality?language=en&referrer=playlist-the_ted_interview_season_3 TED Interview 2019, A radical new theory on how we experience reality.]
* [https://www.ted.com/talks/the_ted_interview_donald_hoffman_has_a_radical_new_theory_on_how_we_experience_reality?language=en&referrer=playlist-the_ted_interview_season_3 TED Interview 2019, A radical new theory on how we experience reality.]
*[http://bigthink.com/robby-berman/we-survive-because-reality-may-be-nothing-like-we-think-it-is We Survive Because Reality May Be Nothing Like We Think It Is. Big Think. 2016.]
* [http://bigthink.com/robby-berman/we-survive-because-reality-may-be-nothing-like-we-think-it-is We Survive Because Reality May Be Nothing Like We Think It Is. Big Think. 2016.]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reYdQYZ9Rj4 Donald Hoffman: Reality is an Illusion - How Evolution Hid the Truth | Lex Fridman Podcast]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQefdkl8PfY Is Reality Real? - This One Idea Might Change Your Entire Life | Donald Hoffman]


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Donald D.}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Donald D.}}

[[Category:1955 births]]
[[Category:1955 births]]
[[Category:American cognitive psychologists]]
⚫
[[Category:American scientists]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
⚫
[[Category:Cognitive scientists]]
[[Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni]]
[[Category:Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni]]
[[Category:Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni]]
[[Category:American scientists]]
[[Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni]]

Latest revision as of 23:52, 18 December 2024

Donald D. Hoffman
Born (1955-12-29) December 29, 1955 (age 68)
San Antonio, Texas, United States
Alma materUniversity of California, Los Angeles (B.A. 1978)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD 1983)
Scientific career
FieldsCognitive science

Donald David Hoffman (born December 29, 1955) is an American cognitive psychologist and popular science author. He is a professor emeritus in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine.

Hoffman studies consciousness, visual perception, and evolutionary psychology using mathematical models and psychophysical experiments. His research subjects include facial attractiveness, the recognition of shape, the perception of motion and color, the evolution of perception, and the mind–body problem.[1][2] He has co-authored two technical books; Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory of Perception (1989) offers a theory of consciousness and its relationship to physics; Automotive Lighting and Human Vision (2005) applies vision science to vehicle lighting. His book Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See (1998) presents the modern science of visual perception to a broad audience.

His 2015 TED Talk, "Do we see reality as it is?" argues that our perceptions have evolved to hide reality from us.[3] He followed this up with a book in 2019, "The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes".

Biography

[edit]
Donald Hoffman being interviewed for the Dutch TV-show The Mind of the Universe.

Hoffman received a Bachelor of Arts degree in quantitative psychology from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1978, and earned his Doctorate of Philosophy in computational psychology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1983 under David Marr and Whitman Richards. He was briefly a Research Scientist at the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of MIT, and then became an assistant professor at the University of California at Irvine (UCI) in 1983. He has remained on the faculty of UCI since then, with a sabbatical during the 1995-1996 academic year at the Zentrum für Interdisziplinäre Forschung of Bielefeld University.[4]

Donald D. Hoffman

Work on consciousness

[edit]

Introduction and overview

[edit]

Hoffman notes that the commonly held view that brain activity causes conscious experience has, so far, proved to be intractable in terms of scientific explanation. Hoffman proposes a solution to the hard problem of consciousness by adopting the converse view that consciousness causes brain activity and, in fact, creates all objects and properties of the physical world. To this end, Hoffman has developed and combined two theories: the "multimodal user interface" (MUI) theory of perception and "conscious realism".

Multimodal user interface (MUI) theory

[edit]

MUI theory[5] states that "perceptual experiences do not match or approximate properties of the objective world, but instead provide a simplified, species-specific, user interface to that world." Hoffman argues that conscious beings have not evolved to perceive the world as it actually is but have evolved to perceive the world in a way that maximizes "fitness payoffs". Hoffman uses the metaphor of a computer desktop and icons - the icons of a computer desktop provide a functional interface so that the user does not have to deal with the underlying programming and electronics in order to use the computer efficiently. Similarly, objects that we perceive in time and space are metaphorical icons that act as our interface to the world and enable us to function as efficiently as possible without having to deal with the overwhelming amount of data underlying reality.[6] This theory implies epiphysicalism, i.e., physical objects, such as quarks and brains and stars are constructed by conscious agents but such physical objects have no causal power.[5] While panpsychism claims that rocks, mountains, the moon, etc. are conscious, "Conscious Realism" in this theory (Multimodal user interface theory) does not. Instead, what it claims is all such objects are icons within the user interface of a conscious agent, but that does not entail the claim that the objects themselves are conscious.[5]

The interface theory of perception

[edit]

The interface theory of perception is the idea that our perceptual experiences don't necessarily map onto what exists in the reality of itself. This is in contrast to the popular view of critical realism, which argues that some of our perceptual experiences map onto the reality of the natural world. In the critical realist's view, primary qualities like height and weight represent actual qualities of reality, whereas secondary qualities don't. Within the interface theory of perception, neither primary nor secondary qualities necessarily map onto reality.[7]

Conscious realism

[edit]

Conscious realism is described as a non-physicalist monism which holds that consciousness is the primary reality and the physical world emerges from that. The objective world consists of conscious agents and their experiences. "What exists in the objective world, independent of my perceptions, is a world of conscious agents, not a world of unconscious particles and fields. Those particles and fields are icons in the MUIs of conscious agents but are not themselves fundamental denizens of the objective world. Consciousness is fundamental."[8][3]

Perception of the physical world is a byproduct of consciousness

[edit]

Together, MUI theory and Conscious Realism form the foundation for an overall theory that the physical world is not objective but is an epiphenomenon (secondary phenomenon) caused by consciousness. Hoffman has said that some form of reality may exist, but may be completely different from the reality our brains model and perceive.[9] Reality may not be made of space-time and physical objects.[3] Through supposing that consciousness is fundamental, Hoffman provides a possible solution to the hard problem of consciousness, which wrestles with the notion of why we seem to have conscious immediate experiences, and how sentient beings could arise from seemingly non-sentient matter. Hoffman argues that consciousness is more fundamental than the objects and patterns perceived by consciousness.[10][better source needed] We have conscious experiences because consciousness is posited as a fundamental aspect of reality. The problem of how sentient beings arise from seemingly non-sentient matter is also addressed because it alters the notion of non-sentient matter. Perceptions of non-sentient matter are mere byproducts of consciousness and don't necessarily reflect reality. This means the causal notion of non-sentient matter developing into sentient beings is open to question.

Implications from evolution

[edit]

Hoffman argues that natural selection is necessarily directed toward fitness payoffs and that organisms develop internal models of reality that increase these fitness payoffs. This means that organisms develop a perception of the world that is directed towards fitness, and not of reality. This led him to argue that evolution has developed sensory systems in organisms that have high fitness but don't offer a correct perception of reality.[3][11]

Books

[edit]
  • Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory of Perception (1989)
  • Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See (1998)
  • Automotive Lighting and Human Vision (2005)
  • The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes (2019)

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Hoffman, D. D.; Richards, W. A. (December 1984). "Parts of recognition". Cognition. 18 (1–3): 65–96. doi:10.1016/0010-0277(84)90022-2. PMID 6543164. S2CID 6397710.
  2. ^ Hoffman, Donald D.; Singh, Manish (April 1, 1997). "Salience of visual parts". Cognition. 63 (1): 29–78. doi:10.1016/S0010-0277(96)00791-3. ISSN 0010-0277. PMID 9187064. S2CID 14845190.
  3. ^ a b c d Hoffman 2015.
  4. ^ Donald D Hoffman CV www.cogsci.uci.edu
  5. ^ a b c Hoffman, Donald D. (September 1, 2010). "Sensory Experiences as Cryptic Symbols of a Multimodal User Interface". Activitas Nervosa Superior. 52 (3): 95–104. doi:10.1007/BF03379572. ISSN 1802-9698.
  6. ^ Gefter, Amanda (April 21, 2016). "The Evolutionary Argument Against Reality". Quanta Magazine. Retrieved December 8, 2019.
  7. ^ Hoffman, Donald D.; Singh, Manish; Prakash, Chetan (December 1, 2015). "The Interface Theory of Perception". Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 22 (6): 1480–1506. doi:10.3758/s13423-015-0890-8. ISSN 1531-5320. PMID 26384988.
  8. ^ Hoffman, Donald (2008). "Conscious Realism and the Mind-Body Problem". Mind and Matter. 6 (1): 87–121. ConsciousRealism2 at cogsci.uci.edu
  9. ^ "#178 - The Reality Illusion". Sam Harris. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  10. ^ The Hard Problem of Consciousness | Donald Hoffman on YouTube
  11. ^ Hoffman 2019.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Donald_D._Hoffman&oldid=1263843602"