> This isn't a matter of narrow-minded computer scientists incapable of conceiving of emergent phenomena, it's the uninformed filling in the blank spaces in the

> This isn't a matter of narrow-minded computer scientists incapable of conceiving of emergent phenomena, it's the uninformed filling in the blank spaces in their mind with "here be dragons". Well first of all, an important thing to understand is that there BE dragons. The fact that anything exists at all means there be dragons, both literally and figuratively. Let me explain: In the world we have various 'symbols', whose main characteristic is that they can be told apart from one another, like the color yellow and the pitch of your voice. Now look to the very edge of existence, at no symbols- it is clearly impossible for there to be nothing, because there are obviously at least one symbol, even more than that in fact. However there is something key we can derive from this, and for an analogy look back to the laws of physics. In our universe, there is some configuration of symbols that somehow constrains the logic of configurations/interactions of symbols within this place. Without some symbols to do some local constraining of other symbols, nothing is constrained. So look to the edge of existence- at 1 symbol, what constrains its nature, what constrains the quantity of symbols, or even the arbitrary configurations of those symbols? Absolutely nothing constrains them, so it is only logical to assume that every arbitrary configuration of symbols exists right 'now', always 'has', and always will (quote marks because time only exists in our local configuration). So if(*) there is some fundamental aspect of reality, some force that performs the experiencing of these infinite phenomena, perhaps it experiences infinite, arbitrary configurations of everything- anything from receiving sensory data equivalent to the smell of a strawberry whenever the bottom 1/3rd of your toaster touches a carbon atom between 16:13 and 16:14 on a Monday, to an arbitrary I/O mapping to the configuration which we call the human brain in a totally arbitrary 'universe'. Effectively, what I am arguing is that it may not be off-base to argue that machines can be conscious. The truth may very well be the opposite, that absolutely everything to ever exist is conscious in every way that can be conceived! That is, if there is no fundamental rule that makes my configuration the only possible conscious one, but I doubt that.