On 15/06/2016 12:19 am, Telmo Menezes wrote:
On Mon, Jun 13, 2016 at 3:22 AM, Bruce Kellett
Assuming arithmetic does not even account for mind, much less account for
matter. Saying that consciousness is a computation is empty until one
specifies precisely what form of computation.
It might be that all computations are conscious -- but with much
different contents, of course. I feel some inclination towards this
hypothesis.
But then you explain nothing. You have just made an identification
"computation = consciousness", which tells us nothing useful
And why that form of
computation rather than some other? I don't see that computationalism
actually solves anything -- the problems it leaves unanswered are every bit
as difficult as the problems one started with.
But computationalism is the default position of modern science. The
brain is a neural network, the neural network is equivalent to a
Turing Machine and it is running a program, and this is what mind is
somehow. Non-computationalism seems to require some form of duality,
appeal to a soul and so on.
Have you never heard of supervenience? Consciousness is just a property
of matter in certain configurations and acting in certain ways. Such a
position does not deny that consciousness has some similarities to a
computation, but recognizes that it is a computation performed by a
brain composed of matter. There is no inherent duality.
Bruce
I don't find that computationalism was created to "solve anything". It
is just the most obvious interpretation of a variety of empirical
observations across fields: neuroscience, biology, chemistry, computer
science.
At least with scientific
realism, one has the objective external world to underpin one's experience:
i.e., one knows that it works, even if one is not quite sure how.
Again, computationalism is the position of scientific realism. But
Bruno's work (unless you mange to refute it) shows that
computationalism is not compatible with the sort of objective external
world that you like. So you have to choose one or the other.
I do agree with you that, as far as I can tell, consciousness remains
a mystery in Bruno's model.
I can see how the UDA is uncomfortable to some people, but like with
all science we can't choose, just check for correctness.
Telmo.
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