Call For Abstracts | Beyond Neuro-computationalism: the philosophy and science of biological brains

Confirmed Keynote Speakers

• Alicia Juarrero (University of Miami/Georgetown University Medical Center)
• Romain Brette (The Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics)
• Mazviita Chirimuuta (University of Edinburgh)
• Matteo Mossio (IHPST, Paris)
• Kate Nave (University of Edinburgh)
• Vicente Raja (Universidad de Murcia)

Call for abstracts

One of the defining characteristics of traditional cognitive science is that it views the brain as a computing machine: according to the “classical cognitivist” view of the mind, the mind is the software running on our neural computing hardware. And whilst this picture is probably a bit of a caricature of what most cognitive scientists today actually hold, the mind sciences as a whole still offer a markedly machinic understanding of minds and brains. Comparatively little space is given to a genuinely biological exploration of the mind and brain, looking at them as biological entities, shaped by selection pressures and a multiplicity of bodily, metabolic, and environmental constraints. Yet pursuing such an understanding can be epistemically advantageous, and open novel, exciting avenues of research. It may bring cognitive neuroscience back in contact with biology, and lead to novel models of cognitive processes and intelligent behavior, or even to a general reconceptualization of our mental lives.

To explore these issues, we are opening a call for abstracts for contributed papers. Topics suitable for submission include (but are not limited to)

• The role of biology and biological theories to understand brain structure and function
• Biological theories of agency and intelligent behavior
• The role of biological constraints (e.g. metabolism, allostasis) in neuroscience
• Alternatives to the “computer metaphor” and non-machinic models of the brain
• Information from a biological and/or situated perspective
• Alternatives to neural representations, and related notions

We invite abstracts of no more than 1000 words (references excluded), suitable for a 20-minute presentation followed by a 10-minute Q&A session. Abstracts should be submitted as anonymized PDF files.

The deadline for abstract submission is April the 13th, 2026

For further questions, please contact marco.facchin@uantwerpen.be

Source and more details: https://www.uantwerpen.be/en/research-groups/philosophical-psychology/events/upcoming/beyond-neurocomputationalism/