Rules for Proving Physicalism

Actually written FEBRUARY 22, 2015

Rules for proving physicalism (that consciousness is nothing more than matter and energy): Using only physical concepts, show how a group of physical stuff is an instance of consciousness. (Hint: explain why one group of physical stuff is an instance of consciousness while another group is not.) Do not sneak in any concepts of consciousness into the premises of your proof. (Hint 1: don’t use concepts like “representation” or “information” and so on. Strictly use concepts of physical causality.) (Hint 2: don’t reference the brain, as in “It physically functions like a brain, and a brain is conscious, therefore it is an instance of consciousness.” That’s a non sequitur cop-out that proves nothing.) Ready? … Go!

< Previous Physicalism/Consciousness writing

Next Physicalism/Consciousness writing >

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Benevolism Test Quiz

Actually written MAY 22, 2006 Message originating from Luke Turner $100.00 reward for information leading to my acquaintance with people who score highly on the enclosed, 10 question quiz. Prize goes to the chronologically first person in a successful chain of leads who supplies fruitful information. If a single lead chain produces my acquaintance with multiple high-scorers, prize increases by half of previous prize increase: $100.00 for 1 high-scorer, $150.00 for 2, $175.00 for 3, and so on. Qualifying scores are by my personal judgment until I become confident in the quiz as a reliable measure. You can help me gain such confidence by taking the quiz yourself. If I happen to know you, your scores will help me measure the predictive accuracy of the quiz. (And be assured that high-scores, although rare, do exist. My sister-in-law is one of them.) Clues: Look for people who are inclined to work in nursing or theraputic professions, and who nurture their intellects. Look for unpopular peo
Read more

Against Metaphysical Continua

Actually written JANUARY 29, 2018 Here I present my reasoning against the existence of metaphysical continua. Preface: What is a metaphysical continua? -WHAT IS A METAPHYSICAL CONTINUA?- First I will explain continua. An example of a continua is a number line representing the real numbers. Each point on the line represents a real number. Between any two of these real numbers there are more real numbers that can be represented by points and labeled. Real numbers can be found between any two real numbers infinitely. No matter how much we zoom in between two neighboring real number points, we can find more real number points between them, infinitely. We will never zoom into the space between two neighboring real number points and find a gap in the real numbers. Continua have no gaps. They are infinitely micro-scaleable. Real numbers, that we represent on number lines, are abstract continua that we grasp with the conceptual level of our consciousness. Space and time are examples of continu
Read more

The Mythical Metaphorical Quest for Real Knowledge of How to Relieve Suffering

Actually written AUGUST 2, 2023 -  Allegory showing the problems in choosing between realism and anti-realism. Imagine you want to discover the most effective way for humanity to relieve widespread, sustained suffering. Imagine also that you observe how humans inflict much suffering upon one another over disagreements about how suffering can most effectively be relieved. So you want to get to the bottom of these misery aggravating knowledge conflicts. You want to discover how to validate knowledge and truth. So you embark on a quest to discover how truth and knowledge can be validated. Off you go, on the mythical metaphorical quest for real knowledge, hoping it will end the wars over how best to relieve suffering. You’ve gone several days on that road. Finally you round the side of a steep mountain and see before you a kind of shrine in the shape of a giant boulder with a shovel slightly embedded in it from the top. Surrounding the shrine is a small encampment. When you arrive there, y
Read more