Tag: Philosophy of Mind

The mind / body dualism of ‘Edge of Tomorrow’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw61gCe2oqI This weekend, I watched the movie, 'Edge of Tomorrow', also known as 'Live. Die. Repeat.'  It's the latest in a common motif in science fiction and fantasy, the time loop story, where the hero repeats the same events over and over until they find a way to break out.  It's a concept that's been … Continue reading The mind / body dualism of ‘Edge of Tomorrow’ →

Massimo Pigliucci’s pessimistic view of mind uploading

Massimo Pigliucci wrote a paper on his skepticism of the possibility of mind uploading, the idea that our minds are information which it might be possible someday to copy into a computer virtual reality system or some other type of technology.  His paper appears to be one chapter in a broader book, 'Intelligence Unbound: The Future … Continue reading Massimo Pigliucci’s pessimistic view of mind uploading →

David Chalmers: How do you explain consciousness?

In this TED talk, David Chalmers gives a summary of the problem whose name he coined, the hard problem of consciousness. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhRhtFFhNzQ via David Chalmers: How do you explain consciousness? - YouTube. It seems like people who've contemplated consciousness fall into two groups, those who are bothered by the hard problem, and those who are not. … Continue reading David Chalmers: How do you explain consciousness? →

Is consciousness in control? Does it matter?

A new scientific paper claims to describe an experiment that shows that consciousness controls our actions.  From the paper: These results indicate that conscious intentions govern motor function… until today, it was unclear whether conscious motor intention exists prior to movement, or whether the brain constructs such an intention after movement initiation. The Neuroskeptic takes … Continue reading Is consciousness in control? Does it matter? →

Philosophy that ignores science risks impotence

Peter Hankins has a post up reviewing Harold Langsam's new book, 'The Wonder of Consciousness'.  While the book sounds interesting (Hankins describes it as philosophically dense, so I probably won't read it), something bothered me while reading Hankins's review. It was the idea that we can determine things about the world without looking at it, … Continue reading Philosophy that ignores science risks impotence →

Consciousness and the Social Brain: A review

What is consciousness?  What is the inner experience that we all feel we have?  Is it an illusion or an ontological reality? Michael Graziano thinks it is a reality, and he thinks he has found a scientific theory for it, which he describes in his book: 'Consciousness and the Social Brain'. The quest for a … Continue reading Consciousness and the Social Brain: A review →

Quantum Theory Won’t Save The Soul – Neuroskeptic | DiscoverMagazine.com

Could quantum mechanics save the soul? In the light of 20th century physics, is free will plausible? Such as been the hope of some philosophers, scientists (and pretenders to those titles) – but neuroscientist Peter Clarke argues that it’s just not happening, in an interesting new paper: Neuroscience, quantum indeterminism and the Cartesian soul via … Continue reading Quantum Theory Won’t Save The Soul – Neuroskeptic | DiscoverMagazine.com →

Michael Graziano: The Spirit Constructed in the Brain

I perceive consciousness in myself. My brain constructs a perceptual model of a mind that thinks this and that, feels this and that and is aware of this and that; the mind is attributed to my own location. That model provides an organized, coherent way for me to understand myself -- to predict and help … Continue reading Michael Graziano: The Spirit Constructed in the Brain →