Mental Functioning and the Ontology of Language Barry Smith October 1, 2012 with thanks to Janna Hastings 1 Basic Formal Ontology BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Dependent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Process BFO:Disposition 2 Basic Formal Ontology and Mental Functioning Ontology (MFO) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process Organism BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Mental Functioning Related Anatomical Structure Cognitive Representation Mental Process Behaviour inducing state Affective Representation 3 Basic Formal Ontology and Mental Functioning Ontology (MFO) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process Organism BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Mental Functioning Related Anatomical Structure Cognitive Representation Mental Process Behaviour inducing state Affective Representation 4 Functions vs. Functionings Continuants vs. Occurrents BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant Organism BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Cognitive Representation Mental Process Mental Function Mental Functioning 5 Aboutness (‘Intentionality’) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant Organism BFO:Occurrent MFO BFO:Process BFO:Dependent Continuant Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Cognitive Representation Mental Function Mental Process Mental Functioning does all mental functioning involve cognitive representation (aboutness)? what is aboutness? 6 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) 7 Linguistic Functioning Ontology (1. Speech and hearing) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Linguistic competence Behaviour inducing state Speech competence of a population = a [spoken] language Speech competence of an individual Cognitive Representation Speech process Speechmediated cognitive representation Hearing (registering) 8 process 8 Linguistic Functioning Ontology (2. Reading and writing) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Linguistic competence Behaviour inducing state Written linguistic competence of a population = a [written] language Written linguistic competence of an individual Cognitive Representation Writing process Writtenlanguagemediated cognitive representation Reading (registering) 9 process 9 Linguistic Functioning Ontology (the whole thing) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Linguistic competence Behaviour inducing state Linguistic competence of a population = a language Linguistic competence of an individual Cognitive Representation Writing Languagemediated cognitive representation Speaking Reading 10 10 How to build MF±Language First idea: Along what dimensions human beings can depart from normal (‘canonical’) mental and linguistic functioning? 11 http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/45578/ from WHO | World Health Organization 12 For ICD mental function is a subtype of body function ICD definition of ‘Body functions’: Body functions are the physiological functions of body systems (including psychological functions). Impairments are problems in body function or structure as a significant deviation or loss. 13 http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/45578/ 14 http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/45578/ 15 Definition of ‘Mental Functions’ Definitions: 'This chapter is about the functions of the brain: both global mental functions, such as consciousness, energy and drive, and specific mental functions, such as memory, language and calculation mental functions.' 16 17 18 Quality ≠ Function 19 20 21 Dreaming? 22 http://apps.who.int/classifications/icd10/browse/2010/en#/F44.8 23 http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/45578/ 24 http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/45578/ 25 26 Ontological traffic rule: always use singular nouns 27 28 29 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) 30 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) 31 Definitions: 'Specific mental functions of focusing on an external stimulus or internal experience for the required period of time.' 32 33 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) brainin endocrine gland 34 35 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) 36 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) brainin olfactory system 37 38 Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) brainin olfactory system 39 Again, confusion of function and quality 40 41 Integrative language functions Definitions: 'Mental functions that organize semantic and symbolic meaning, grammatical structure and ideas for the production of messages in spoken, written or other forms of language.' 42 WHO ICF Pro Performs an amazingly difficult task of unifying public data across the planet (Versions in 5 different languages, plus Youth Version) Serves billing task in US http://apps.who.int/classifications/icfbrowser/ 43 http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/icf/ 44 WHO ICF Con Use of ‘other’ and other features make it is not future proof (will not evolve gracefully with advances in neuroscience Poor or absent definitions will mean inconsistent annotation of data Lack of logical definitions would mean poor support for computational reasoning with data that is annotated 45 Strategy for MF Ontology • Ensure that the ontology is developed in conformity with basic biology ontologies such as the Gene Ontology • Provide human-readable definitions for each term to ensure consistent annotation • Provide logical definitions to support reasoning with data 46 Examples from MF-Emotion Ontology http://bioportal.bioontology.org/ontologies/49078/ 47 ‘emotion process’ 48 ‘physiological response to emotion’ need link to a physiology ontology 49 Mental Functioning is Neural Functioning: Towards a Unified Ontology of Mind, Brain, and Behavior Gwen A. Frishkoff Department of Psychology Georgia State University NeuroInformatics Center University of Oregon Outline of Talk • What is a mental process? – A view from cognitive psychology – The Mind–Brain problem and three proposed solutions (ontology views) • A neurophsysiological framework for understanding mental processes – Levels of brain, levels of mind – What are mental representations “about”? (Proposed solution to problems of subjectivity, aboutness) What is a Mental Process? A view from cognitive psychology Sensation, Perception Short-term memory Cognitive control Motor control, Action Long-term Memory Habits & Skills How do we know any of this? That is, where did the components of the standard model come from? The mind as a black box • • X Mental processes cannot be observed.* They must be inferred based on what we can observe. What can we observe?... *We can revise this assumption later (if Mind = Brain) What we can observe… and How • Physical processes in body Behavior (response type, accuracy, reaction time) • Physiological processes in brain Neural activity and correlates of neural activity (blood flow to brain regions) A schematic of Helmholtz’s apparatus for measuring the time course of muscle contraction and the propagation velocity of the nerve impulse. Source: Bennett, 1999. CogPO! A 256-channel electrode “net” that is used to measure brain electrical activity (EEG) “A mental process is a neural process.” ARGUMENTS IN FAVOR • Avoids Mind-Body dualism • More precise than other two solutions • Gives ready framework for comparative neurophysiology & comparative cognition • Knowledge of brain structure & function informs understanding of mental function (and dysfunction) Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) brainin endocrine gland 57 brain endocrine gland ENVIRONMENT Mental Functioning Ontology (MF) 58 brain endocrine gland ENVIRONMENT Aboutness 59 Levels of brain, levels of mind Representation, monitoring and control of bodily interface to external environment (“real world”) Representation, monitoring and control of internal environment (“self”) Mesulam, 1990 61 Levels of brain, levels of mind Representation, monitoring and control of bodily interface to external environment (“real world”) Note use of “sneer” quotes – “real world”, “self” Representation, monitoring and control of internal environment (“self”) Mesulam, 1990 62 Mental representations: What are they “about”? Sensoy-motor maps in the brain Peripheral (sensory-motor) parts of the body are “mapped” to (represented by) an orderly set of discrete regions within sensory and motor cortex. Maps of the internal milieux The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis monitors and controls internal bodily functions, such as blood circulation, breathing, digestion, stress, and arousal. Shimon Edelman’s Riddle of Representation two humans, a monkey, and a robot are looking at a piece of cheese; what is common to the representational processes in their visual systems? 64 Answer: The cheese, of course 65 The real cheese 66 Perception of internal (bodily) environment (“self”) Perception of external environment/ sensory input (“real world”) 69 Mental processes, states, and representations or objects or processes inside the body or objects or processes inside the body objects and processes inside and outside the body play a role here too all of these together form the environment external targets internal and external features causally relevant to perception, nociception, etc. the arrow of aboutness external targets internal and external features causally relevant to perception, nociception, etc. Brentano-Husserl approach to intentionality 76 intentionality can be mediated by language “food” 77 Brentano, Husserl, Chisholm Searle: the primacy of the intentional linguistic expressions have meanings, because there are mental experiences which have aboutness Roderick M. Chisholm, “The Primacy of the Intentional”, Synthese, 61, 1984, 89-109 78 the primacy of language (Sellars …): mental experiences are about objects because words have meaning meaning 79 to understand the aboutness of the mental, study the semantics of language (model theory) meaning 80 language comes later than mental aboutness 81 What is a Mental Process? A view from cognitive psychology Sensation, Perception Short-term memory Cognitive control Motor control, Action Long-term Memory Habits & Skills All of this is present before there is language Thesis: aboutness is a primitive relation between a mental process and a target external to that mental process Problems for this thesis: 1. mismatch 2. non-existence 1. mismatch of content to target “poison” • the apple is poisonous • the apple is not poisonous two phenomenologically identical mental experiences 84 1. mismatch of content to target “poison” • the apple is poisonous • the apple is not poisonous two neurologically identical mental experiences 85 2. there is no target “unicorn” 86 Information artifacts, too, involve aboutness, and the same 3 kinds of mismatch BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Dependent Continuant can be copied BFO:Generically Dependent Continuant concretized in a bearer Information Content Entity is about something (anything) $64,000 problem of providing a coherent account of intentionality Neurology-based solution: we are never directed towards real objects in any case, but only to “real objects” Let us find an easier, neutral, route to building an ontology which does not rest on finding a solution to this problem 88 Ontological traffic rule: to build an ontology of the types of entities in a complex domain, focus on the canonical instances 89 Canonical fear fear subtype canonical fear EMOTION COMPONENT Action tendency Subjective emotional feeling Behavioural response Characteristic appraisal CHARACTERISTIC FOR FEAR Fight-or-flight Negative, tense, powerless Characteristic fearful facial expression Something (some real thing) in my environment is dangerous to me 90 Canonical and non-canonical fear Canonical fear gives rise to action tendencies that are conformant to a perceived danger Phobias = dispositions giving rise to noncanonical fear, e.g. laridaphobia Another case involving non-canonical fear: people taking pleasure in watching horror films 91 Canonical pain & variants PCT: pain with concordant tissue damage: the patient experiences pain of the evolutionarily most basic sort = pain in response to concordant tissue damage Variant pain PNT: pain with peripheral trauma but discordant (elevated) relative to tissue damage: there is peripheral trauma, but the patient is experiencing pain of an intensity that is discordant therewith; NN: neuropathic nociception: no peripheral trauma, but the patient is experiencing pain in result of a neuropathic disorder in the nociceptive system. 92 93 Pain-related phenomena without pain PBWP: pain behavior without pain: there is a cry or report of pain, but no pain is being experienced (a fact which may or may not be detectable by an external observer) TWP: Tissue-damage without pain: tissue damage normally of the sort to cause pain does not activate the pain system. 94 Pain Ontology (PN) branch of MF-EM Lying about pain 95 Canonical pain pain canonical pain EMOTION COMPONENT CHARACTERISTIC FOR PAIN Action tendency Withdrawal Subjective emotional feeling Negative, tense, powerless Behavioural response Characteristic painful facial expression Characteristic appraisal Something is dangerous to me 97 How shall we structure the MF ontology? 100 simple object-presenting acts vs. judgments, evaluations, … mental process content (putative) target content of presentation presenting act object of presentation “apple” judgment-content judging act “the apple over there is ripe” evaluating act emotional act appraisal … “it is good that the apple over there is ripe” state of affairs objective, fact ? 101 Successful intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation target present target absent “apple” • target present = you are in physical contact with target • successful intentionality 102 Successful intentionality mental process content (putative) target presenting act content of presentation object of presentation target present + evidence target Absent + evidence “apple” – evidence • target present = with direct evidence • target absent = with indirect evidence, with no evidence at all 103 relational acts • include also cases of unconscious awareness, e.g. of the chair that you are sitting on 104 Veridical intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist ordinary perception 105 Veridical intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist veridical thinking about 106 Non-veridical intentionality mental process content (putative) target presenting act content of presentation object of presentation target present target absent “apple” object exists object does not exist non-veridical thinking about (error, hallucination, imagination, …) 107 Non-veridical intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist error, hallucination = the presenting process is dependent on an underlying false belief 108 Non-veridical intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist thinking about Macbeth = the presenting process is not dependent on an underlying false belief 109 An excluded case mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist this combination is impossible 110 Ontological traffic rule: to build an ontology of the types of entities in a complex domain, focus on the canonical instances – in the Macbeth case we are dealing with what happens when language goes on holiday 111 mental act about a real-world object relational (~ perception) content match content mismatch veridical non-relational (~ linguistic) content match content mismatch non-veridical 112 Veridical intentionality mental process content presenting act content of presentation (putative) target object of presentation “apple” target present target absent object exists object does not exist ordinary perception evolutionarily most basic case 113 114 cognitive representation 115 116 An emotion trichotomy Occurrent emotion, e.g. when a person experiences hate for another person on a specific occasion Emotion disposition, e.g. when a person hates someone for a long period of time (is predisposed to occurrent emotions) Personality trait = a predisposition to emotion dispositions (e.g. sadness) of certain sorts (and thus also to corresponding occurrent emotions) Janna Hastings, Werner Ceusters, Barry Smith, Kevin Mulligan, “Dispositions and Processes in the Emotion Ontology”, Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Biomedical Ontology, 2011, 71-78. 117 A psychological trichotomy Occurrent mental process, e.g. when Mary sees that Jim has gone bald Mental dispositions, e.g. when Mary thereafter believes for a period of time that Jim has gone bald Psychological traits = predispositions to mental cognitive dispositions (e.g. to beliefs) of certain sorts 118 119 A psycholinguistic trichotomy Occurrent psycholinguistic process, e.g. when Mary reads that Jim has gone bald Mental dispositions, e.g. when Mary thereafter believes for a period of time what she has read Psycholinguistic traits = predispositions to psycholingistic dispositions of certain sorts including linguistic competence 120 121 122 Frishkoff: The mind as a black box X • Mental processes cannot be observed.* • They must be inferred based on what we can observe. What does a temperature chart represent? 124 What does a chart representing your pulse rate represent? 85 80 75 70 65 60 Time 1 Time 2 Time 3 125 Cardiac Cycle, Left Ventricle 126 What does a chart of changes in your pulse rate represent? 85 80 75 70 65 60 Time 1 Time 2 Time 3 127 What does a chart of changes in the Dow Jones industrial average represent? 1399 1398 1397 1396 1395 1394 1393 1392 1391 time 128 activity during this time interval 129 130 1398 1397 1396 1395 1394 1393 1392 1391 10.5810.59 11 11.0111.0211.0311.0411.0511.0611.0711.0811.09 11.1 11.1111.12 time 131 1398 1397 1396 1395 1394 1393 1392 1391 10.5810.59 11 11.0111.0211.0311.0411.0511.0611.0711.0811.09 11.1 11.1111.12 time What this represents is real, and not just “real” 132 coronary heart disease disease during phase of early lesions and small fibrous plaques instantiates at t1 disease during phase of asymptomatic (‘silent’) infarction instantiates at t2 disease during phase of surface disruption of plaque instantiates at t3 unstable angina instantiates at t4 stable angina instantiates at t5 John’s coronary heart disease What this represents is real, and not just “real” time 133 What did your temperature do over the last month, Jim? Jim’s temperature process profile, the target of a certain sort of cognitive selection, or cognitive profiling 134 The graph picks out just one dimension of qualitative change within a much larger conglomerate of processes within Jim Hence ‘process profile’ 135 Compare perception of polyphonic music • Cognitive selection of the cello part when you listen to a string quartet • Picking out a certain sonic partial process within a larger body of vibrations • Ignoring sneezes, coughs, … • (or sometimes focusing on sneezes and coughs for diagnostic purposes) 136 Compare perception of polyphonic music • Cognitive selection of the cello part when you listen to a string quartet • Picking out a certain sonic partial process within a larger body of vibrations • Ignoring sneezes, coughs, … • (or sometimes focusing on sneezes and coughs for diagnostic purposes) 137 time-series graph of acoustic signal, spectrogram, formants, jaw displacement and other speech parameters 138 adding phonetic, phonemic and syllable levels 139 g u t e n 140 add brain 141 speech is a process profile the speech process is to the totality of acoustic signal, spectrogram, formants, jaw displacement, mental and neurological processes as the pulse rate process is to the totality of aortic, ventricular and atrial pressure, ventricular volume, electrical activity, arterial flow, and other processes in the heart 142 Breakthrough: First sound recordings based on reading human auditory cortex (PLoS Biology, January 2012) 143 Top: spectrogram of words presented to subject. Middle and bottom: reconstructions of speech based on readings from electrodes attached to patient's brain. 144 biological pathways are process profiles BFO: GDC BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Process Information Content Entity has participant implicitly represents Molecular collective Pathway Pathway diagram BULK has grain MOLECULAR explicitly represents Reaction Individual molecule inheres in BFO:Disposition mental processes, too, are process profiles 146 what is a language? something analogous to a biological species (a population of competences) BFO:Entity BFO BFO:Continuant BFO:Independent Continuant BFO:Occurrent BFO:Dependent Continuant MFO BFO:Process Bodily Process BFO:Disposition BFO:Quality Linguistic competence Behaviour inducing state Linguistic competence of a population = a language Linguistic competence of an individual Cognitive Representation Writing Languagemediated cognitive representation Speaking Reading 154 154 • Examples of dispositions that are constantly being realized: – stock exchange – heart beat – brain activity – social order – language (social) 155