Mark Johnson

2 papers in the library · 16 citations · publishing 2018-2022

Papers

Neurophysiological mechanisms of implicit and explicit memory in the process of consciousness.

Journal of neurophysiology October 1, 2022 Don M Tucker, Phan Luu, Mark Johnson 16 citations

Conscious experience is intricately linked to neurophysiological mechanisms of memory. A study involving 100 participants revealed that implicit memory, regulated by lemnothalamic pathways during REM sleep, underpins unconscious awareness, while explicit memory, driven by collothalamic structures during NREM sleep, shapes focused consciousness. This dual system highlights how ongoing cognitive processes are influenced by a hierarchy of neural connections across various brain regions. Understanding these mechanisms may shed light on the enigmatic qualities of subjective experiences, often referred to as "the hard problem of consciousness."

DOI: 10.1152/jn.00328.2022 Full text Phenomenology Collothalamic Consciousness Lemnothalamic +1

The Embodiment of Language

The Oxford Handbook of 4E Cognition October 9, 2018 Mark Johnson

Meaning is not primarily linguistic but arises from sensory, motor, and affective processes rooted in the body and brain. This article surveys embodied structures of meaning-making—such as body-part projections, perceptual concepts, image schemas, emotions, body-based grammatical constructions, and conceptual metaphors—as understood through simulation semantics, embodied construction grammar, and neural theory of language. It argues that the four Es of cognition (embodied, embedded, enactive, extended) should be supplemented with three more: emotional, evolutionary, and exaptative.

DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198735410.013.33