From: Scott R (jse885@spinn.net)
Date: Sat Oct 04 2003 - 16:21:14 BST
Paul,
> [Scott:]
> The difference between the weather and the mind is that with mind there
> is memory, and hence self-awareness.
>
> [Paul:]
> As I said, it is a crude analogy to draw attention to the argument that
there is nothing "doing" the thinking other than a figure of speech. In this
conception, "self-awareness" is just more of the process.
And my objection to the analogy is precisely that: that it attempts to lead
one to think that thinking is just like any observed process, to the idea
that there is nothing doing it. This is nominalism. It is an attempt to
avoid the logic of contradictory identity by ignoring the dynamic in
thinking.
>
> [Scott:]
> Your analogy reminds me of the
> functionalist comparison of thinking, as something that brains do, with
> digestion, as something that stomachs do. The all-important difference,
> of course, is that thinking can think about thinking, but digestion cannot
> digest digestion.
>
> [Paul:]
> I said nothing about thinking being "something that brains do". As I
> have said previously, one cannot understand intellectual patterns by
> investigating biological patterns.
I know you didn't. I am saying you cannot understand thinking by treating
like any other observed process. In fact, one cannot understand thinking at
all, and these analogies are false attempts at such an understanding.
- Scott
MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
Mail Archives:
Aug '98 - Oct '02 - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
Nov '02 Onward - http://www.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/summary.html
MD Queries - horse@darkstar.uk.net
To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sat Oct 04 2003 - 16:31:20 BST