Church's thesis and cognitive science (Q1103599)

The paper is intended as a defense of Church's thesis (CT) that effective calculability means recursiveness. First the point of view of many ``naive'' mathematicians is supported: to look at CT as connecting mathematics with ``reality'' and thus having empirical content. Then the author discusses some failures of arguments agains CT. The most interesting part, however, is his automaton modelling of the mental ability of symbol recognition. The paper supports the weak version of mentalism which assumes that all really well understood mental processes are capable of a description as effective processes.