includes psychological activities that acquire, store, retrieve, transform, or apply information. Cognitive processes are a fundamental part of mental life Cognition encompasses mental processes that deal with knowledge. It includes psychological activities that acquire, store, retrieve, transform, or apply information. Cognitive processes are a fundamental part of mental life, helping individuals understand and interact with the world. Cognitive processes are typically categorized by their function. Perception organizes and interprets sensory inform Cognition encompasses mental processes that deal with knowledge. It includes psychological activities that acquire, store, retrieve, transform, or apply information. Cognitive processes are a fundamental part of mental life, helping individuals understand and interact with the world. Cognitive processes are typically categorized by their function. Perception organizes and interprets sensory information, such as light and sound, to construct a coherent experience of objects and events. Attention prioritizes specific aspects while filtering out irrelevant information. Memory is the ability to retain, store, and retrieve information, including working memory and long-term memory. Thinking encompasses psychological activities in which concepts, ideas, and mental representations are considered and manipulated. It includes reasoning, concept formation, problem solving, and decision-making. Many cognitive activities deal with language, including language acquisition, comprehension, and production. Metacognitive processes deal with information about other mental processes, such as knowing that one can recall a specific memory. Classifications also distinguish between conscious and unconscious processes and between controlled and automatic ones. There are many theories of the nature of cognition. Classical computationalism posits that cognitive processes manipulate symbols according to formal rules, similar to how computers ex Classical computationalism posits that cognitive processes manipulate symbols according to formal rules, similar to how computers execute algorithms. Connectionism models the mind as a complex network of nodes where information flows as they communicate with each other. Representationalism and anti-representationalism disagree about whether cognitive processes operate on internal representations of the world. Many disciplines explore cognition, including psychology, neuroscience, and cognitive science. They examine different levels of abstraction and employ distinct methods of inquiry. They can also take place unconsciously, such as automatic mechanisms responsible for language processing and facial recognition. Many fields of inquiry study cognition, including psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, and philosophy. While research focuses primarily on the human mind, cognition is not limited to humans and encompasses animal and artificial forms. The term cognition originates from the Indo-European root gnō-, meaning 'to know'. This root is present in the Latin term gnōscere, also meaning 'to know', which led to the formation of the verb cognōscere, meaning 'to learn, to understand'. Through its perfect participle cognitus, the Latin verb entered Middle English as cognicioun. The earliest documented use occurred in 1447, eventually evolving into the modern English word cognition. == Types of cognitive processes == Cognitive processes encompass various types, each managing different information and performing distinct functions within the human mind. They are sometimes divided into basic processes, like perception and memory, and higher-order processes, like thinking. This distinction rests on the idea that higher-order processes could not occur without basic processes. Cognitive psychologists also study the relation between cognition and emotion—for example, how emotions influence mental operations like attention and decision-making. Cognitive processes do not always function as they should, and can lead to inaccuracies, either because of natural errors associated with cognitive biases or as a result of pathological impairments from cognitive disorders. Cognitive biases are systematic ways in which human thinking deviates from ideal norms of rationality. They are common patterns that affect most people, leading to misinterpretations of reality and suboptimal decisions. Anti-representationalism is closely related to 4E cognition, a family of views critical of prioritizing internal representations. 4E cognition examines the relation between mind, body, and environment through four approaches: embodied, embedded, extended, and enactive cognition. Embodied cognition is the idea that cognitive processes are grounded in bodily experience and cannot be understood in isolation from the organism's sensorimotor capacities. Embedded cognition asserts that cognitive effort and efficiency depend on physical and social environments. Philosophers of mind examine the nature of cognition and related concepts, such as mind, representation, and consciousness. They are particularly interested in the relation between the mind and the body and the problem of how physical states can give rise to conscious experience. Epistemologists seek to understand the nature and limits of knowledge. They further ask under what conditions cognitive processes, such as perception and reasoning, lead to knowledge. Philosophers also reflect on the fields of inquiry studying cognition. Difficulties in measuring internal cognitive events led to the rise of behaviorism, which sought to explain observable conduct through stimulus–response patterns without reference to unobservable mental states. Initially developed by John B. Watson (1878–1958), it dominated psychological research in the first half of the 20th century. Challenges in explaining complex human behavior prompted a paradigm shift in the 1950s—the cognitive revolution.