This is the third or fourth video I've seen of Arvin Ash, and have been impressed with how level headed his thinking is. (In other words, his biases seem to match up well with mine.) This one on how alien life might evolve strikes me as right on the money. (The first few minutes end … Continue reading The evolution of extraterrestrial life
Category: Zeitgeist
Alpha
This weekend I finally got around to watching the movie Alpha. This is a story set in prehistory, about 20,000 BC. It's about a boy who gets injured and separated from his hunting party, and ends up thrown together with an injured wolf. He takes care of the wolf, and they develop a bond. The … Continue reading Alpha
Viruses and the definition of “life”
One of the things we often debate here is the definition of "consciousness," but consciousness is far from the only concept that is difficult to define. Others include religion, democracy, free will, and biological life. Life has a number of definitions, many of which are suitable for particular purposes. If I recall correctly, NASA, for … Continue reading Viruses and the definition of “life”
All adults are vulnerable to COVID-19
The other day I urged you to take COVID-19 seriously. But in that post, I said that if you were younger than 60 or didn't have health problems, the virus probably wouldn't do anything to you. In retrospect, that was misleading. A lot of people are saying that we should reopen the economy for people … Continue reading All adults are vulnerable to COVID-19
Take COVID-19 seriously
Just got back from getting a haircut and a run to the grocery store (which had an atmosphere very similar to the one down here when a hurricane is imminent), during which time I think I heard enough crazy rumors to start my own conspiracy blog. The worst, by far, were variations that this is … Continue reading Take COVID-19 seriously
AI: An Exercise in Analytical Philosophy
An excellent analysis of the issue! It seems like this is a problem for any interesting philosophical question. I'm always struck by how often philosophical disagreements are really just definitional disputes in disguise. It's particularly troublesome for any discussion about the mind, about us at the most fundamental level, because people have intense emotions about … Continue reading AI: An Exercise in Analytical Philosophy
An excellent explanation of quantum decoherence, and how it might lead to many worlds
Matt O'Dowd is a first class science communicator. In this latest video, he does an excellent job explaining decoherence, and why the MWI (many worlds interpretation) ends up being so tempting when you see it through. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlOwJWJWPUs Of course, this doesn't mean MWI is the right interpretation, but it does demonstrate why many find it … Continue reading An excellent explanation of quantum decoherence, and how it might lead to many worlds
Islands of awareness
(Warning: neuroscience weeds) An interesting paper by Tim Bayne, Anil Seth, and Marcello Massimi, which came up in my Twitter stream today, asks whether there can be islands of awareness. Ordinary consciousness involves ongoing interaction with the environment, receiving sensory information, and producing motor output. It has a functional role, enabling an organism to deal … Continue reading Islands of awareness
Daniel Dennett on why phenomenal consciousness is access consciousness
This old talk by Daniel Dennett touches on a lot of topics we've discussed recently. Dennett explains why it's wrong to regard phenomenal consciousness (the "what it's likeness" or "raw experience" version) as separate from access consciousness (the cognitive access of information for decision making, memory, report, etc). Note that Dennett doesn't deny the existence … Continue reading Daniel Dennett on why phenomenal consciousness is access consciousness
Stimulating the central lateral thalamus produces consciousness
(Warning: neuroscience weeds) A couple of people have asked me about this study, described in numerous popular science articles (such as this one). A monkey had electrodes installed in its brain that allowed scientists to stimulate parts of its thalamus, the region at the center of the brain which links the cortex to the brainstem … Continue reading Stimulating the central lateral thalamus produces consciousness
SelfAwarePatterns 