Hi
On Tue, 14 Mar 2000, G. Marc Turner wrote:
> Just thinking about reducing "mental events" down to physical activities...
> so, one day in order to test someone's knowledge of an area all we will
> have to do is measure some physical activity (e.g., firing patterns between
> a few neurons when presented with a certain question). Or would we even
There is often a confusion between the in-principle explanation
of macro phenomena by reductionist mechanisms and the
implications for actual prediction. A leaf falling from a tree
is a prime example. The physicist would have a terrible time
predicting the path of the leaf with any accuracy, but that does
not mean that we need anything more than the physical processes
to explain its path.
Best wishes
Jim
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James M. Clark (204) 786-9757
Department of Psychology (204) 774-4134 Fax
University of Winnipeg 4L05D
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
CANADA http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/~clark
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