Unseen

Simon Paynton wrote:

I think that the current view of consciousness is too limited. Consciousness consists of both awareness and mental action.

WTF is “mental action”?

jakelafort wrote:

Unseen and Pope, very little doubt the vid of the Octo-whiz is a spoof. Unseen, i agree that without experience consciousness is absent. I have read and seen enough on octopuses to be pretty sure they are uncanny problem solvers. Solving problems indicates intelligence. Intelligence is a sign of consciousness. There i said…

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PopeBeanie wrote:

Just now talking about my mom’s decline during dementia makes me doubly certain that consciousness exists, as medical workers know, at various and varying levels of lucidity… which can be roughly (and routinely) measured (albeit not thoroughly empirically), respecting more than one kind or channel of conscious awareness, and the…

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My father was the greatest. Kind, helpful, and unjudgmental all while giving his kids plenty of space to lead their own lives, all that despite being a Christian. To me, he exemplified the good face of Christianity.

In late 2011, I was called upon by my brother and sister to leave Oregon and return to Ohio to give him the daily care he needed t…[Read more]

jakelafort wrote:

I think octopus are conscious. Octopuses solve complex problems. There are so many documented examples of their problem solving that it is a leap to assume that they are unaware and lacking in the subjective feelings of their experiences. I am not sure if this short vid is real.

I think the video is tongue-in-cheek, but as to…[Read more]

_Robert_ wrote:
Are you personally willing to give up 40%-60% of your income to support socialized medicine or is that gonna be someone else’s responsibility? The big rock stars that stay in the UK and pay their taxes generally get “knighted”. Many just expat out of there.

I can’t imagine anyone (or very many) expating out of the US, giving up US…[Read more]

Davis wrote:

It would be a great gesture, but the practicalities make it almost impossible and in the end the money everyone gets is chump-change. A far better solution is offering services, programs and assistance such as programs that attack poverty head on and ensure affordable housing, education, daycare and necesities for all. Programs that…

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PopeBeanie wrote:

But professor, that’s known in philosophy as a “slippery slope” fallacy. 🙂

Less like a slippery slope than setting a regrettable precedent.

My problem with reparations is where will it end, and should we ask for reparations from Great Britain for forcing our country’s original settlers to leave so they could freely practice their religion? What about reparations for Native Americans? Women? Gays?

It would be neverending.

PopeBeanie wrote:

I keep suspecting that you’re understanding something that I’m not. I can’t yet make sense of why the why question is even relevant, so let me try a different angle, and you can tell me if it doesn’t get close enough to the meat of your intended question.

Whether it’s relevant depends on you. I’m a philosopher, and in my field…[Read more]

PopeBeanie wrote:

LOL, _Robert_ I need to watch that movie again. Strangely, I don’t even remember that scene.

I remember it because it confused me that the interrogator somewhat resembled Harrison Ford so much. Maybe that was intentional on Ridley Scott’s part in that it has turned out that Ford’s character has turned out to be a replicant h…[Read more]

Davis wrote:

It is not surprising that the how of consciousness is not understood. The complexity of the brain is mind boggling.

Indeed! One thing I’ve found pretty astonishing, is how many people who discuss free-will or consciousness don’t offer any theory of consciousness at all. Even more shocking is their illiteracy on what little we do kno…

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PopeBeanie wrote:

Back on your main topic, I feel it’s important to emphasize again how we should better define type, spectrum, or depth of “consciousness”, because different kinds and degrees of consciousness will have different answers to your question. It’s also important (imo) to differentiate “modern day” consciousness vs “legacy” hu…

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jakelafort wrote:

Unseen, your why question is nonsensical. It is premature. Your intransigence is frustrating. Consciousness is biological. Its depth and degree are dependent on the architecture of the brain. It is not surprising that the how of consciousness is not understood. The complexity of the brain is mind boggling. Unless and until the…

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In the last few posts, I don’t detect much discussion of WHY we are conscious.

Anyway PopeBeanie, since you’ve gone off on a tangent, I’ll just pipe in with this: In the future,
computing may return to analog because digital computers are so hackable as it is, and with quantum computing on the horizon, digital computers may become nearly 100%…[Read more]

jakelafort wrote:

No, i don’t know or can’t be certain of the rich internal subjective world of others. But it is a safer wager than the wager you are making about consciousness being an unnecessary add-on.

Safer wager based on what facts or evidence?

You on the other hand are turning a scientific question into a philosophical question. And you…

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Simon Paynton wrote:

What makes you think it’s like a passive TV set? Don’t you think it does anything in and of itself? If you experience an emotion, you can name the emotion, and doing so passes experience of it into conscious thought. Then you can reappraise the emotion and maybe change your behaviour from a quick knee-jerk reaction into mor…

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_Robert_ wrote:

It simply hasn’t reached critical mass yet.

Perhaps, however the technology gloom and doom predictions like the y2k apocalypse never seem to gain critical mass because the economy reacts swiftly and flexibly, Imagine energy costs rise again, well that favors local small scale farming and once again that requires manual labor. P…

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Simon Paynton wrote:

Isn’t it one part of the brain (the executive decision-making part) talking to the rest? We are conscious because it serves a purpose.

That purpose, is the answer to the question I’m asking. What is that purpose, because being conscious and having experiences doesn’t seem to contribute anything.

Descartes showed me that my o…[Read more]

Simon Paynton wrote:

jakelafort wrote:

We won’t answer WHYs

In this case, what does “why” mean anyway? What is the purpose of consciousness? I don’t understand. Why are things conscious rather than unconscious? Why is there a light on in our heads? Is that the question? In a human mind this space is filled with language, but the purpose of the…

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