The importance of gradual change in the spectrum argument, is that since personal identity can be conserved through discontinous changes (the example you cite here), then any gradual change should not alter identity either.
The slight flaw in this argument comes again by analogy with the genetic code with gradual change considered equivalent to point mutation. However a single point mutation is sufficient to dramatically alter the phenotype, whereas large changes to the genome can accrue without change to the phenotype at all (the so called neutral mutations). On Thu, Jun 01, 2006 at 02:07:09PM +1000, Stathis Papaioannou wrote: > Jesse Mazer writes: > > > The strength of the synaptic connections between different > neurons or > > groups of neurons does change in a fairly continuous way, no? Of > course > > even if we specify all the synaptic connections and strengths, one's > > > conscious state can change in the short term as different neurons become > > > active, but I don't think this is important to Parfit's thought-experiment, > > > you can imagine a gradual change in the strength and arrangement of > > synapses > even while over the short term there may be more variation in > > mood and > thought processes. > I don't think anyone has questioned the importance of *gradual* transition > from one person to another in Parfit's argument. After all, we have > discontinuities in consciousness all the time: when we are asleep, if we > perform some action in a drunken stupor and later forget that it ever > happened, following a head injury which may result in the excision of entire > chunks of our lives from memory. Given this, we can imagine changing from one > person to another despite discontinuities. > > Stathis Papaioannou > _________________________________________________________________ > Express yourself instantly with MSN Messenger! Download today it's FREE! > http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/ > > -- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- A/Prof Russell Standish Phone 8308 3119 (mobile) Mathematics 0425 253119 (") UNSW SYDNEY 2052 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Australia http://parallel.hpc.unsw.edu.au/rks International prefix +612, Interstate prefix 02 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
