Building Extended Minds

The mind–technology problem refers to issues that lie at the intersection of technology development and the philosophy of mind. In the present paper, I explore one aspect of the mind–technology problem, namely, the role of technologies in supporting the emergence of extended minds. I approach this issue from an engineering perspective, suggesting that the project to build extended minds yields insights into a number of philosophical problems. These include our understanding of the criteria for cognitive extension and the way the borders/boundaries of extended cognitive mechanisms are delineated.