From: Marc Geddes (marc_geddes@yahoo.co.nz)
Date: Thu May 27 2004 - 00:15:25 MDT
--- Ben Goertzel <ben@goertzel.org> wrote: >
>
> 2) Have you worked out a convincing physics-based
> explanation of
> consciousness? If so, why aren't you sharing it
> with us? Too busy to
> take the time?
>
>
> -- Ben G
>
Ooh, ooh, can I have a go at explaining consciousness?
It has to be some deep 'self-referential' property of
the universe itself I think. So I would lean towards
panpsychism: there has to be some 'ground state' of
pure awareness in everything. My reasoning follows
from two premises:
(1) Everything has to have an explanation
(2) There is no analytic/synthetic distinction
(empirical knowledge is the only kind of knowledge
there is)
Given that every THING has to have an explanation, and
all things exist WITHIN reality (inside the Universe),
every thing has to be explicable using the tools that
exist inside reality. Since the universe itself
demands an explanation, and the premise was that
everything has an explanation, we have to classify the
universe itself as a thing. From this it follows that
the universe exists INSIDE the universe (since a
'thing' by definition is that which exists within
reality). The essential unitary nature of the term
'Universe' defines a 'Self-Similarly' property which
exists at all levels to maintain the consistency of
reality. (This Self-Similarity property also
establishes the 'Identity' of the universe). The
self-similarity property is also self-referential in
nature (the universe is self-contained - the universe
exists INSIDE the universe).
Since empirical knowledge is the only kind of
knowledge there is, at some level 'awareness' itself
has to be equivalent to some abstract property of the
physical world. The 'Identity' of the universe itself
(the self-referential, self-similarity property) is
the most likely candidate.
Asking for the Identity of the Universe is to ask for
the nature of the Self-Similarity Property alluded to
above. It has to be (by definition) the most general
abstract properties underlying existence (otherwise it
wouldn't be truly fundamental). Asking for the most
general abstract properties defining existence leads
to the basic laws of logic as the most likely
candidate (The laws of logic are implicit in the
operations of everything).
The laws of logic: The law of Identity, The law of
non-contradiction, The law of the excluded Middle.
Hypothesis: Qualia ARE the laws of logic. There is a
ground state of pure awareness which exists in
everything.
Conclusions: Higher level forms of qualia are
obtained through multiple recursion of the laws of
logic. Brains are the physical expression of the laws
of logic undergoing multiple levels of recursion to a
high degree.
Got all that? Geez, this is all very basic stuff guys
;)
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