In recent decades, evolutionary theories have portrayed embodied agents as actively modifying their environments through bodily actions, making them more conducive to survival. This has sparked inquiries into the role of language in this process. It has been suggested that language functions as a structure humans have constructed to enhance their cognitive niche. In the sciences, formalization inevitably involves choices about how concepts are represented, alongside the abstract nature of the notions involved, leading to a plurality of perspectives and raising significant ontological and epistemological questions. This workshop aims to investigate the possibility of reinterpreting the expressive, representational, and inferential dimensions of language. We are particularly interested in whether these dimensions should be examined from an internal, mental perspective or whether they instead require an external, social perspective, and in considering the role of science in this relationship between internal and external worlds.
The workshop will ensure a respectful and inclusive environment, where diverse perspectives are acknowledged and all participants have the opportunity to contribute.
Confirmed speakers
- Guido Baggio (Università di Roma Tre)
- Anke Breunig (Martin Luther Universität Halle-Wittenberg)
- Ulf Hlobil (Concordia University)
- Leon Horsten (Universität Konstanz)
- James O’Shea (University College Dublin)
- Francesca Poggiolesi (CNRS, Parigi)
- Preston Stovall (University of Hradec Králové)
We welcome paper proposals from young scholars on topics that may include, but are not limited to:
- How, mathematical notation and representational tools (such as maps, symbols, and diagrams) can be seen as means to refine our reasoning abilities.
- How the development of appropriate expressive resources may enable the articulation of representational contents and inferential relations.
- How the cognitive abilities supporting various linguistic competences contribute to grounding the intentional and normative dimensions of human interaction with the environment.
- How language can refer to abstract objects through the determination of their meaning.
- How the human component influences the characterization of objective relationships between abstract entities.
Proposals are to be sent by 12:00 CET October 30, 2024 to giacomo.turbanti@unipi.it.
Submissions should include:
- An extended abstract (maximum 1000 word, excluding the bibliography) in English, in PDF and prepared for blind review.
- Contact information: the author(s) name(s), department(s) and affiliation(s), email address(es).
All submissions should be suitable for a 20-minutes presentation, followed by a 10-minutes discussion.
Notification of acceptance will be given by November 15.
Venue: Centro congressi Le Benedettine, Pisa.
Language of the Workhop: English
Organizers: Danilo Manca, Giacomo Turbanti, Giorgio Venturi.