The Workings of Our Brains

Ever wonder how that oh-so-smart thing inside your noggin is working? Sure, most of us have some concept of what we think is going on in our minds, some of us much more than others, but did you ever want to know where common sense comes from, or the concept of the self?

Marvin Minsky ’50 thinks he has it figured out, and in his new book, “The Emotion Machine,” he’s willing to tell you.

“The Emotion Machine” is a complement to Minsky’s last work, “The Society of Mind,” which put forth a number of radical ideas about the human brain. “The Emotion Machine,” on the other hand, focuses on how mechanical processes of the brain actually work.

It takes apart “suitcase-like words” such as “consciousness,” “self,” and “love” and tries to explain what the brain is really doing in everyday situations. “Instead of searching for simple explanations,” Minsky writes, “we need to find more complicated ways to explain our most familiar mental events.” He does just that in “The Emotion Machine.”

The book defies modern psychology by interpreting the mind and its many processes as mechanistic.

Minsky’s perceptions may stem from his vast research into artificial intelligence, psychology, and computer science­—he’s Toshiba professor of media arts and sciences and professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT. As his book makes clear, he’s done a lot of work with robots, and that work has led to some of the key concepts in the book.

“The Emotion Machine” features rudimentary illustrations and graphs to supplement many of the key notions, which are often presented conceptually, and in a light that would make them easy for any reader to understand. As Minsky states, “any theory has to begin with a highly simplified version of it.”

Minsky’s book is laid out with each chapter addressing a different concept. The book is difficult to summarize holistically, because Minsky’s style presents what famed philosopher Douglas R. Hofstadter has called “a stunning collage of staccato images.” Indeed, the chapters, and even the subunits of the chapters, seem to be able to stand alone, almost as in a textbook.

Minsky inserts rhetorical interjections and a number of diagrams, however, to detract from that textbook aesthetic. These tools, combined with a number of assorted quotations, make the book easy to read for the knowledgeable and uninformed alike.

“The Emotion Machine” is definitely a worthwhile read, but before you even attempt it, you should be sure that you understand what the book is about. If you pick the book up with a head full of preconceptions, or without a totally open mind, you’ll no doubt wonder about what the hell Minsky’s thinking.

My first time through, I had exactly the same reaction, until I realized that this book is presenting a very new perspective, and is intentionally and necessarily painted in a very basic light. The book doesn’t deal with the structures of the brain in its explanation because, as Minsky states, “research on this is advancing so quickly that any conclusion one might make today could be outdated in just a few weeks.”

“The Emotion Machine,” however, does clearly reflect Minsky’s research and interest in artificial intelligence, as the title suggests.

It would be a good read for anyone interested in psychology, artificial intelligence, computer sciences, or looking to understand his or her own mental processes.

The Emotion Machine
By Marvin Minsky '50
Simon & Schuster
Out Now