Neuro Humanities Studies

“Empathy and the Aesthetics of Language”

We are pleased to announce the publication of the first special issue of the TSLL, “Empathy and the Aesthetics of Language” with the contribution of Renata Gambino, Grazia Pulvirenti, Samuel Rashe and Taylor Enoch.

https://utpress.utexas.edu/journals/texas-studies-in-literature-and-language/

Link to the IISN 2024

 

 The Third Annual International Interdisciplinary Seminar on Neuroesthetics, took place at the University of Alicante on the 22 November 2024. The discussed  topic was  ”Imaging Imagination” .
A link to the IISN 2024 website may be found here: https://sites.google.com/view/imagination2024
We are pleased to announce that the website for this event has now been updated with video recordings of all talks and discussion sessions, as well as abstracts and summaries of the questions posed to the panel, including timestamps of the panelists’ replies. The website will continue to be updated with references to recent research that is related to the topic of imagination, so please ensure to check back regularly.
We would, once again, like to thank the University of Alicante for hosting us and providing us with recordings of the seminar. We would also like to thank our sponsors, who may be found on the poster on the website at the link above. We are already looking forward to future sessions of the International Interdisciplinary Seminar on Neuroesthetics!

CFP: International workshop Multimodal language

Call for Papers: International workshop

Multimodal language: theoretical perspectives and research methods

Catania, 13-14 March 

The investigation of linguistic communication in natural contexts cannot ignore that human language is an inherently multimodal system. Indeed, the interaction between the vocal and the other bodily modalities is articulated within closely cooperating semiotic subsystems, dynamically completing each other into a coherent message (McNeill 1992; Kendon 2014; Capirci et al. 2022). Within a perspective that sees language as a form of cooperative action, the vocal and the gestural components – along with gaze and facial expressions – coordinate in a clearly interdependent way. This happens both at the level of expression and at the level of content, with the different modalities interacting on the semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic level (see McNeill 1992, Kendon 2004, Loehr 2012, Volterra et al. 2017, among many others).
Differently from the first generation of scholars in multimodality, whose first and essential need was to build terminologies and methods of analysis that could highlights the specifics of each modality, the foremost theoretical challenge in contemporary research is to explore theories and methodologies that could describe how these modalities interact in forming organized structures (Trujillo & Holler 2023). This requires, obviously, new categories and new descriptions, together with a move away from mere quantifications of occurrences towards other variables. It therefore becomes necessary to give greater consideration to the qualitative aspects of each component and the way in which they are deployed in the flow of discourse.
A growing number of scholars in linguistics, psychology and

New book: Mind the Text! Neurohermeneutics for Suspicious Readers

  by Renata Gambino & Grazia Pulvirenti, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2024

At the convergence of human studies, biocultural and neuroscientific research, this book offers unprecedented insights into the interpretation of literary texts. It presents the neurohermeneutics of suspicion—a bold, innovative approach illuminating the intricate bond between literature and the human mind. Embracing ambiguity as a hallmark of literature, readers are encouraged to adopt a suspicious stance to unearth the complex, multilayered and dynamic nature of literary texts, thereby fully engaging their imagination and their embodied, emotional and imaginative faculties. Our exploration navigates the crossroads of language, thought, culture, and biology, delving into hidden layers of meaning within literary texts. This transformative exploration not only redefines literary scholarship but also offers lay readers a dynamic, immersive reading experience. Ultimately, this book aims to ignite curiosity, suspense, and surprise, transforming the act of reading into a creative and engaging journey through the depths of the human mind and aesthetic experiences.

 Info about the Book

In memory of prof. Giancarlo Magnano San Lio

«Un uomo perbene. Tormentato, curioso.
Che ha voluto vivere in proprio, conoscendo le miserie dell’Umanità,
ha scelto di amarne la poesia e l’incanto.»

***

«A respectable man. Tormented, curious.
Who wanted to live on his own. Knowing the miseries of Humanity,
he chose to love its poetry and enchantment»

ENID Teach – NOOC Collaborative and Research Methodology

 15th September – 15th November 2024

The NewHums Research Centre kindly invites everyone to join the 4th and last edition of

 NOOC Collaborative and Research Methodology

 

What is this NOOC

This course (NOOC) is part of the training proposal by the project Erasmus+, “European network in D-flexible teaching (ENID-Teach)”, PROJECT NUMBER – 2021-1-ES01-KA220-HED-000027551, KA220-HED – Cooperation partnerships in higher education, coordinated by UNED – Spain. The main goal of the project is to provide digital training to university lecturers about specific teaching and research methodologies, which can be used and improved introducing digital tools and environments.

This course, produced by University of Catania, introduces participants to the Collaborative and Research Methodology and how digital tools can improve the teaching practice. The course will present the theory of collaborative teaching and research as based on three main theoretical pillars: constructivism, distributed cognition and computer supported collaborative learning. It will also introduce some digital tools to be used to enrich the teaching practice.

More Info about ENID Teach

We warmly invite European educators to enhance their teaching toolkit by participating in our free training programme on “Flexible and Innovative Methodologies.“

Cognitive Futures 2024 @ University of Catania

Deadline: 15th January 2024

10 years Cognitive Futures in The Arts and Humanities

From 4E to 5E Cognition: about Emotions

June 3-5, 2024 – Aesthetic Emotions

10 years ago the series of Cognitive Future conferences started in Bangor, moved to Durham, Oxford, Stony Brook, Kent, Mainz and was held online (instead of in Osnabrück) during pandemic emergency. The war prevented its taking place in St. Petersburg. This year it took place in Warsaw; in 2024 it will be Catania – with a ten-year anniversary.The focus will be on the latest epistemic paradigm of 4E Cognition and

Linguaggio come Prisma

A very interesting meeting at the Bendectine Monastery in Catania

Poster – Linguaggio come Prisma

The Brain, Ambiguity and Art – Meeting in Alicante

Ambiguity as a Characteristic of the Architecture of the Human Mind – Semir Zeki

Variability, and the choice that it entails, is the bread and butter of evolution. It is therefore not surprising to find that variability is built into ordinary perception and is also a fundamental characteristic of great works of art. The reason for this is simple; it provides for choice and is therefore in line with great evolutionary principles. In works of art – whether derived from visual art or musical art – ambiguity is key. In ordinary perception it may act as a safeguard, protecting the individual from unsafe decisions. In art, it allows for the multiple interpretations of the same stimulus or work. The neurobiological definition of ambiguity is quite precise and different from the usual dictionary definitions. The latter usually define ambiguity as “uncertainty” or “confusing” or “of doubtful meaning”. The neurobiological definition is the exact opposite: it is certainty but certainty that occupies the conscious stage momentarily, before ceding its place to another momentary certainty. Hence, in neurobiological terms, there is no correct answer to an ambiguous stimulus, because all answers are correct momentarily. This is so regardless of whether one is viewing simple “ambiguous” figures such as the “rabbit-duck” bi-stable figure, the metastable paintings of Dalí or the finished masterpieces of Vermeer, Caravaggio and Tiziano which, in spite of their “finished” status, allow of multiple interpretations, none of which is the correct one because all are correct; it also applies to literary and musical works. I will give a more detailed description of the varieties of ambiguity and try to address, in outline, the question of how the conflict between them is resolved neurobiologically.

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To know more and to follow online please register here : https://platonicacademylondon.wordpress.com/events/

 

Project

The Neuro Humanities Studies Network aims at creating a multidisciplinary research community in order to develop and structure a linking platform for neuro-scientific, cognitive topics and humanities.


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