The way we think : conceptual blending and the mind s hidden complexities

"Until recently, cognitive science has focused on such mental functions as problem solving, grammar, and pattern recognition - the functions, in other words, in which the human mind most resembles a computer. But human beings are more than computers: We invent new meanings, make discoveries, have new ideas that never existed before, and use our powerful imaginations routinely in everyday life. Cognitive science, at last, is focusing on these mysterious, creative aspects of the mind." "A major statement by two of the world s leading cognitive scientists, The Way We Think is an analysis of the imaginative nature of the human mind. The research program of conceptual blending is already widely known; this book, written to be accessible to lay readers and students as well as interested scientists, is its definitive statement. Gilles Fauconnier and Mark Turner show that conceptual blending is at the root of the cognitively modern human mind - the mind that human beings have worked with since the Upper Paleolithic Age. Conceptual blends themselves are repeatedly blended and reblended by people and their cultures to create the rich fabric of the way we live. Learning and navigating these blends is the crucial mental activity of the developing child."—BOOK JACKET.