Douglas Hofstadter's book is concerned directly with the nature of "maps" or lin
ks between formal systems. However, according to Hofstadter, the formal system t
hat underlies all mental activity transcends the system that supports it. If lif
e can grow out of the formal chemical substrate of the cell, if consciousness ca
n emerge out of a formal system of firing neurons, then so too will computers at
tain human intelligence.
Godel, Escher, Bach is a wonderful exploration of fa
scinating ideas at the heart of cognitive science: meaning, reduction, recursion
, and much more.
