For those wondering where I’ve been recently the answer is that I’ve been working on a collection of new papers which I intend to publish soon. The thing is there are 125 of them, so it took a lot of work to finalize them.
Have to say this. MIT Press’s failure thus far to promote Inborn Knowledge is inexplicable.The book has been out nearly four months with not a single blurb posted on either Amazon or B&N. Even the basic “look inside” feature remains unactivated. Like WTF … even though incompetence of such magnitude in publishing has plenty of precedent.
Please help me with the following thought experiment. Suppose that we have got 2 identical embryos, each composed of just 8 cells. We expose them to exactly the same environmental conditions: PH, salinity, temperature, radiation, light intensity and so on. All operations necessary for their development into babies, are performed by identical robots. How and why would the 2 individuals be separate conscious agents ? What does consciousness ultimately depend on? Why would the ghosts in the machines differ, and what (since apart from occupying different regions of space, all other conditions are identical) would cause their difference ? Help ! Please !
You just need to note the difference between numerical and qualitative identity: they would be exactly similar (like their bodies) but not one and the same person–they would be numerically distinct centers of consciousness.
Great news!
Have to say this. MIT Press’s failure thus far to promote Inborn Knowledge is inexplicable.The book has been out nearly four months with not a single blurb posted on either Amazon or B&N. Even the basic “look inside” feature remains unactivated. Like WTF … even though incompetence of such magnitude in publishing has plenty of precedent.
They do seem rather silent about it, not sure why.
Oops — the “look inside” feature is in fact activated, finally. That’s a start.
Fantastic Colin – are these new papers? Can you give us a flavour of what will appear?
All new papers, with sections on mind, metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, religion, biology, logic, language, and Other.
Great – looking forward to that. Publication date?
Not yet fixed.
Please help me with the following thought experiment. Suppose that we have got 2 identical embryos, each composed of just 8 cells. We expose them to exactly the same environmental conditions: PH, salinity, temperature, radiation, light intensity and so on. All operations necessary for their development into babies, are performed by identical robots. How and why would the 2 individuals be separate conscious agents ? What does consciousness ultimately depend on? Why would the ghosts in the machines differ, and what (since apart from occupying different regions of space, all other conditions are identical) would cause their difference ? Help ! Please !
You just need to note the difference between numerical and qualitative identity: they would be exactly similar (like their bodies) but not one and the same person–they would be numerically distinct centers of consciousness.