Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community
I don't trust fMRI analyses of human cognitive functions at all, so I'm not citing this paper as evidence of anything. But the question it asks is worth asking: do we need language in order to reason logically? On the surface it would seem we do: logic just is a symbol manipulation system (with semantics doing the work of connecting it to trust and meaning). But as Hume more, babies and animals can think logically. This paper concludes that language is not necessary, but again, I'd want better evidence.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Jul 16, 2026 05:51 a.m.

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