Re: Qualia Question


Curt Welch wrote:

> Right, we don't know if everything about human behavior can be explaned
> mechanically.
>
> But there's plenty of reason to insist that everything MUST be explained
> mechanically in order to do the thing that many of us are here do -
> understand the possibilities of AI.
>
> And currently, there's no proof that everything that creates human behavior
> can't be explained mechanically.

> Those of us that want to create AI, are therefore going to make the
> assumption that allows our goal to be reached. It's pointless to make any
> other assumption - it would just be negative thinking to discourage us from
> a goal which might be possible.
>
> So instead, we assume there is a mechanical answer to everything, and look
> at what that answer must be if it's there.
>
> To solve AI, we insist on finding the mehchanical answer to all human
> behavior, and all human experience, bucause to not find it, is to fail to
> reach the goal.
>



OK, but don't confuse working hypotheses with facts.


> Mechanical to me just means physical matter interacting with other physical
> matter.

why don't you say 'physical' or 'material' then ? But the devil's in
the
detail; the actual properties and causal powers involved.

> I've never been able to understand what Lester uses the word
> "mechaincal" for even though I've seem him talk about hundreds of times.
>
> I believe all human behavior and our subjective experience is all a simple
> result of the mechanical properties of our body. We are just a mechanical
> device. If we build a device with the similar functions, it too will have
> human behavior, as well as its own subjective experience of things like
> aches and pains.

So the functions matter but the physico-chemical properties that
underpin
them don't ? Is that a fact ? Is it 'mechanism' -- as opposed to ,errr,
functionalism ?

.

Relevant Pages

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  • Re: Qualia Question
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