Embodied semantics, which grounds meaning in bodily simulation, and Duffley's sign-based semantics can complement each other as foundational and semantic theories respectively. The argument examines three areas—analysis of FOR, verbs of positive and negative recall, and causative verbs—where Duffley's approach gains support from embodied simulation. Conversely, Duffley's theory may help address two challenges facing embodied semantics: accounting for abstract language and sentence-level simulations. The paper proposes a mutually beneficial relationship between these two theoretical frameworks.
A note examines Almada's ongoing project to explain how conscious minds emerge from the basic components of the physical world. It provides an overview of his approach, challenges his optimism by raising the hard problem of consciousness, and argues that his work can advance by adopting a coherent conceptual account of emergence.