The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to thought (thinking):

Thought is the object of a mental process called thinking, in which beings form psychological associations and models of the world. Thinking is manipulating information, as when we form concepts, engage in problem solving, reason and make decisions. Thought, the act of thinking, produces more thoughts. A thought may be an idea, an image, a sound or even control an emotional feeling.

Nature of thought Thought (or thinking) can be described as all of the following:

An activity taking place in a: brain – organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals (only a few invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, adult sea squirts and starfish do not have a brain). It is the physical structure associated with the mind. mind – abstract entity with the cognitive faculties of consciousness, perception, thinking, judgement, and memory. Having a mind is a characteristic of living creatures.Dictionary.com, "mind": "1. (in a human or other conscious being) the element, part, substance, or process that reasons, thinks, feels, wills, perceives, judges, etc.: the processes of the mind. 2. Psychology. the totality of conscious and unconscious mental processes and activities. 3. intellect or understanding, as distinguished from the faculties of feeling and willing; intelligence."Google definition, "mind": "The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness." Activities taking place in a mind are called mental processes or cognitive functions. computer (see below) – general purpose device that can be programmed to carry out a set of arithmetic or logical operations automatically. Since a sequence of operations (an algorithm) can be readily changed, the computer can solve more than one kind of problem. An activity of intelligence – intelligence is the intellectual process of which is marked by cognition, motivation, and self-awareness. Through intelligence, living creatures possess the cognitive abilities to learn, form concepts, understand, apply logic, and reason, including the capacities to recognize patterns, comprehend ideas, plan, problem solve, make decisions, retaining, and use language to communicate. Intelligence enables living creatures to experience and think. A type of mental process – something that individuals can do with their minds. Mental processes include perception, memory, thinking, volition, and emotion. Sometimes the term cognitive function is used instead. A biological adaptation mechanism Neural network explanation: Thoughts are created by the summation of neural outputs and connections of which vectors form. These vectors describe the magnitude and direction of the connections and action between neurons. The graphs of these vectors can represent a network of neurons whose connections fire in different ways over time as synapses fire. These large thought vectors in the brain cause other vectors of activity. For example: An input from the environment is received by the neural network. The network changes the magnitude and outputs of individual neurons. The altered network outputs the symbols needed to make sense of the input.

Types of thoughts

Content of thoughts

Types of thought (thinking) Listed below are types of thought, also known as thinking processes.

Animal thought

Human thought

Classifications of thought

Creative processes

Decision-making

Erroneous thinking

Emotional intelligence (emotionally based thinking)

Problem solving

Reasoning

Machine thought

Organizational thought Organizational thought (thinking by organizations)

Organizational planning

Aspects of the thinker Aspects of the thinker which may affect (help or hamper) his or her thinking:

Properties of thought

Fields that study thought

Thought tools and thought research

History of thinking

Nootropics (cognitive enhancers and smart drugs)

Substances claimed to improve mental performance:

Organizational thinking concepts

Teaching methods and skills

Awards related to thinking Awards for acts of genius

Organizations Associations pertaining to thought

Media Publications Books Handbook of Automated Reasoning

Periodicals Journal of Automated Reasoning Journal of Formalized Reasoning Positive Thinking Magazine

Television programs Thinkabout (U.S. TV series)

Persons associated with thinking People notable for their extraordinary ability to think Geniuses List of Nobel laureates (see also Nobel Prize) Polymaths Intellectual

Scientists in fields that study thought List of cognitive scientists

Scholars of thinking

Aaron T. Beck Edward de Bono Tony Buzan Noam Chomsky Albert Ellis Howard Gardner Eliyahu M. Goldratt Douglas Hofstadter Ray Kurzweil Marvin Minsky Richard W. Paul Steven Pinker Bertrand Russell Baruch Spinoza Robert Sternberg

Related concepts Cognition Knowledge Multiple intelligences Strategy Structure System Ideation Fact

Awareness and perception

Learning and memory

Miscellaneous

See also

Artificial intelligence Outline of artificial intelligence Human intelligence Outline of human intelligence Neuroscience Outline of neuroscience Psychology Gestalt psychology (theory of mind) Outline of psychology

Miscellaneous

Thinking

Lists

References

External links

The Psychology of Emotions, Feelings and Thoughts, Free Online Book