Philosophy is like sex: sure you can get some interesting results, but that's not why we do it. Going one step beyond…why do you FEEL pain or pleasure? Do plants have emotions? How is possible that some people do not understand other’s emotions? Emotions seem to be everywhere, giving meaning to all events of our lives. They are the backbone of social activities as well as they drive the cognitive processes of several living entities. Several animals, including humans, have emotions but… what about machines?... Do machine can have emotions?
This course will help you to understand and to identify most important philosophical ideas and debates about emotions, as well as it will provide you a rich source of data about neurological, psychological or anthropological analysis of emotions.
In a nutshell: this is a course to feel and think about.
Welcome to this amazing course on the nature of emotions. You’ll see that emotions are everywhere. They are the true meaning of our lives and guide us all throughout our daily actions. There is a lot to discuss, to think about, to discover about them! Six modules for a Course, one Course for new Knowledge!
What's included
6 videos12 readings2 assignments
Show info about module content
6 videos•Total 50 minutes
Welcome to the course!•4 minutes
What is an emotion and why do we have them? Some definitions•10 minutes
The ABC of emotional processes•6 minutes
Why do emotions exist and how many living entities have emotions?•12 minutes
How did emotions evolve?•9 minutes
Where do emotions happen?•9 minutes
12 readings•Total 120 minutes
Welcome, Learners!•10 minutes
CHANGES IN COURSERA•10 minutes
Course format•10 minutes
Syllabus•10 minutes
Solving doubts and technical issues•10 minutes
Free for the UAB community•10 minutes
Evaluation•10 minutes
About the course certificate•10 minutes
FAQs - General topics•10 minutes
FAQs - Assessments and Certificate•10 minutes
Description of the module•10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 60 minutes
L1A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L1B Exam - Reading •30 minutes
How many emotions do exist?
Module 2•2 hours to complete
Module details
After the clarification about the different aspects we can find in emotional analysis, we will look at the number and type of different emotions. There are several theories about their number, and all of them also contain a way to understand how emotions emerged and evolved. The debate will be fun!
What's included
5 videos1 reading2 assignments
Show info about module content
5 videos•Total 35 minutes
Protoemotions, the Holy Grail of protostudies•6 minutes
A taxonomy of emotions•7 minutes
The geography of emotions: Guilt vs Shame cultures•9 minutes
Aware: attention, data selection and the aesthetical feeling of ahness•6 minutes
No pain, no gain? The modulatory nature of emotions•7 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 60 minutes
L2A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L2B Exam - Reading and External Video•30 minutes
What does a plant feel?
Module 3•2 hours to complete
Module details
Not only humans do have emotions. Other mammals have also them. And even insects. But do plants have emotions? Even bacteria, a so small entity, have also these emotional mechanisms. An evolutionary reconstruction will understand to understand how emotions are spread among living entities.
What's included
5 videos1 reading2 assignments
Show info about module content
5 videos•Total 37 minutes
From nonsense to sense? A bacterial dilemma•6 minutes
Animal emotion•9 minutes
The qualia problem•10 minutes
Conscious vs Unconscious emotions•6 minutes
Ghost and chronic emotions•6 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 60 minutes
L3A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L3B Exam - Reading and External Video•30 minutes
A neuroanthropological approach to emotions: from neurons to societies
Module 4•2 hours to complete
Module details
Emotions regulate several key aspects of our life. But they are fundamental for social cohesion. Cooperation or altruism are fundamental aspects of human socialization that must be understood from an emotional perspective. Neurons will show the path to the creation of societies.
What's included
5 videos1 reading2 assignments
Show info about module content
5 videos•Total 49 minutes
Unemotional neurons but emotional brains•12 minutes
Emotions without brains?•10 minutes
Emotions, empathy and ethics: neuroethical challenges•7 minutes
The moral control of the emotional mind•11 minutes
The social management of emotions•9 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 60 minutes
L4A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L4B Exam - Reading and External Video•30 minutes
The philosophies on emotions
Module 5•2 hours to complete
Module details
There are plenty of historical debates on the nature and role of emotions into philosophical spaces. Usually, this approach is made studying at Western thinkers, but we will also include Eastern ones. Therefore, we will analyse how most important philosophical traditions have understood and explain the role of emotions. [Spoiler: they always said they were BAD!].
What's included
5 videos1 reading2 assignments
Show info about module content
5 videos•Total 43 minutes
The classic Western debates on the nature of emotions•11 minutes
The classic Eastern debates on the nature of emotions•9 minutes
The methodological debates on emotions across history•9 minutes
The transdisciplinarity of emotional studies: an epistemological gap•7 minutes
Damasio’s success and Descartes’s error, the new fashion (or trend?)•7 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 60 minutes
L5A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L5B Exam - Reading and External Video•30 minutes
21st Century & emotions: affective computing and sociable robots
Module 6•4 hours to complete
Module details
At the end of this course we will look on how emotions are displayed into new technological frameworks: social networks, mass media,… but we will think about how emotions are implemented into robots or computers. A new technological era come to us, with the same necessities of all previous ones: emotional. Machines will be emotional, if we want they be really smart, autonomous, and efficient.
What's included
5 videos1 reading3 assignments
Show info about module content
5 videos•Total 38 minutes
Neural Nets•7 minutes
Emotional Architectures•6 minutes
Affective computing•7 minutes
Social robotics and HRI•8 minutes
Emotional machines and singularity?•10 minutes
1 reading•Total 10 minutes
Overview•10 minutes
3 assignments•Total 210 minutes
L6A Exam - Lessons/Videos•30 minutes
L6B Exam - Reading and External Video•30 minutes
Get the distinction•150 minutes
Instructor
Instructor ratings
Instructor ratings
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4.4
524 reviews
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E
EB
4·
Reviewed on Mar 24, 2018
Interesting Course with a lot of information not only from a philosopical perspective but also from different scientific approaches!! Nice and very usefull bibliography !!
J
JB
4·
Reviewed on Jan 11, 2020
Jordi did a great job making such a daunting subject fun and interesting!
A
AL
5·
Reviewed on Aug 31, 2024
An entertaining and informative discussion of emotions, from ancient philosophers to modern AI.
This course is for all of you who would like to know more about Emotions, about how we feel.
No academic bakcground is required to take the course. However, there is a desiderata: to have an open-minded attitude towards new information and ideas.
Do I need a previous background?
No, you just need to have an open-minded attitude towards new information and ideas.
Do I need to use a special hardware/software?
No, you will only need a computer, smartphone or tablet to follow the course.
However, if you are interested in obtaining the Course Certificate, you may also need a webcam (if it is not included in your device).
When can I request the certificate?
You can request the certificate at any time: before, during or once you finish the course.
Which information does include the certificate?
· The course name
· The instructor's signature
· The logo of the partner institution offering the course
· A verification URL that allows others to check the Certificate's authenticity
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Which information does not include the certificate?
· Academic credit from the partner institution offering the course
· The final grade you got in the course
· Your ID photo
· The hours you spent working on coursework
· A printed or mailed copy of the Course Certificate.
Certificates are provided as downloadable PDF files, which you can print yourself. You can also share them electronically.
Unfortunately, Coursera cannot provide course Certificates with any more information than they already include.
Is the certificate recognized for official credits at the UAB?
No. The certificate shows that the student has passed the course, but it is not an official qualification of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
What will I get if I purchase the Certificate?
When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.
Is financial aid available?
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.