From: Metaqualia (metaqualia@mynichi.com)
Date: Sun Jan 11 2004 - 10:40:27 MST
> Yes! this is pretty much exactly what I meant when i called myself a
> "panpsychist".
I have a question for "orthodox panpsychists":
1. What determines what kind of particle collections can be used to create a
"qualia producing apparatus"? You talk about the qualia of a rock, but the
existence of the rock as a separate object from everything else is only an
illusion created by our icon-driven visual/cognitive system. What about a
rock + the tree next to it, plus half of the electrons in one arbitrary atom
on venus and the top half brain of the furry pink crab on the other side of
the galaxy? Can this system create a qualia stream? If a rock can, then this
system and any other one cares to imagine can also, and we go back to
moravec's "all universes exist"
2. Why do I experience the qualia stream arising from this particular brain
and not that arising from Ben's brain? (of course the question is circular
since I is the qualia stream itself, still from a first person perspective,
which is the only kind of perspective that really exists, there is
asymmetry).
The reason I ask these questions is that panpsychism would look like a good
tool to put the qualia beast in the cage: as long as everything feels, then
it's ok for us to feel. But when you consider these 2 points everything
resumes not making too much sense.
mq
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