Seeing Reason: Image and Language in Learning to Think

Seeing Reason is an interdisciplinary study of a central topic in cognitive science: how does the mind respond to different kinds of representation of the same information especially when learning, reasoning, and communicating. It uses philosophical, logical, linguistic, psychological, and educational methods to explore this topic, reporting theories, observations, and arguments developed during several years research. Though the focus is on fundamental cognitive theories of human capacities, the issues are closely related to intensely practical issues about the teaching and learning of reasoning and communication skills. Along the way it examines why the human mind has so evolved, the relationship between private language and public thought, and integrates cognitive and social accounts of communication.