Project

Daniel Dennett

  • Date Of Birth

    Date Of Birth
    Daniel Dennett was born on March 28, 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts.
  • Receives BA from Harvard

    Receives BA from Harvard
    Daniel Dennett received his degree in Bachelors of Arts in philosophy from Harvard University in 1963.
  • Publishes Content and Consciousness

    Publishes Content and Consciousness
    In 1969 Daniel Dennett published his book Content and Consciousness, based on his doctoral thesis, which discussed the nature of consciousness.
  • Elbow Room is published

    Elbow Room is published
    In 1984 Dennett published his book Elbow Room: The varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting, a book in which he argues against the "commonsense" version of free will, but in favor of compatibilism: "the theory that free will is compatible with determinism
  • Publishes Consciousness Explained

    Publishes Consciousness Explained
    In 1991, Daniel Dennett published his book Consciousness Explained, which he "provided a comprehensive analysis on the physical and cognitive makeup of the human brain, and how the physical and cognitive process work to arouse the consciousness".
  • Works on AI (COG) at MIT

    Works on AI (COG) at MIT
    In 1993, Daniel Dennett took part in work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in which a team attempted to construct an intelligent, and perhaps even conscious, robot called Cog. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbZ9_rUZZMA
  • Publishes Darwin's Dagerious Idea

    Publishes Darwin's Dagerious Idea
    In 1995, Daniel Dennett published his book Darwin's Dangerous Idea, considered by some to be his best work, in which he attempted to explain how the brain, mind, and consciousness could have come about as a result of Darwinian evolution by natural selection. In 1996 it was awarded the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction.
  • Humanist of the Year

    Humanist of the Year
    In 2004, the American Humanist Association presented him with the title of the Humanist of the Year.
  • Publishes Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon

    Publishes Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon
    In 2006 Daniel Dennett published his book Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, in which he attempted to explain religious belief as a product of the evolution of social behavior. He has become an outspoken contemporary critic of religion and has come into alignment with other prominent "new atheists" Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Sam Harris, coming to be known as the four horsemen of the counter-apocalypse.