以科赫为代表的神经科学家试图用寻找意识的神经关联物来解决心身难题。尽管这种策略对于意识研究具有启示性意义,但是它潜在隐含着一种内在心灵观,把心理状态定位于大脑之中,重新陷入笛卡尔“机器中的幽灵”。如果心灵或意识不止局限于大脑,不是封闭的单子式的心灵,那么神经科学家在研究意识神经关联物时需要注意到外在的因素。
Many current neuroscientists, including Christopher Koch, try to solve the mind-body problem by indi- rectly searching for neuronal correlates of consciousness. Although the strategy is of significance for enlightening the research on consciousness, it may be implied by the internalist view of mind, which holds that one' s state of mind is located inside the brain, and which leads to the Cartesian dogma of the "ghost in the machine". If the mind is not located inside the brain, nor is it self-contained, then the neuroscientist needs to consider external factors in the process of researching NCC.