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> I find the wording "detecting light" problematic. They are not detecting light, they are just measuring some pigment changes on a metal plate that they believ
by erikpukinskis 9y ago
> I find the wording "detecting light" problematic. They are not detecting light, they are just measuring some pigment changes on a metal plate that they believe coincide in time with the reported subjective experiences of light.
- danidiaz 9y agoBut in the case of light, we are detecting a physical thing that is related by causal chains to the change in pigments. The relationship between the subjective feeling of consciousness and the measured neural patterns doesn't seem to be of the same nature. When I see the color blue, does that "cause" anything in my brain?
- erikpukinskis 9y agoLight is not physical, it is a subjective experience. It doesn't exist except in the mind. Photons, other various kinds of radiation, do seem to exist outside of minds.
- justinpombrio 9y agoFor those who missed it, erikpukinskis is demonstrating that danidiaz's argument proves too much: that is, it works just as well to prove that we can't detect light as consciousness. http://slatestarcodex.com/2013/04/13/proving-too-much/ http://slatestarcodex.com/2013/04/13/proving-too-much/