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Thanks! I'll ask one more question while I have your attention. The first thing I searched for on that SEP page was "Popper", because my "how do we know a car

by _dps 15y ago

Thanks! I'll ask one more question while I have your attention. The first thing I searched for on that SEP page was "Popper", because my "how do we know a car engine is not conscious" stems from trying to apply falsifiability to my intuitive notions. What I take from "other minds" is that other people's consciousness is not falsifiable; taken to its natural conclusion, it seems to me that the non-consciousness of an engine is also non-falsifiable. Which is actually pretty cool, to a philosophical simpleton such as myself :-) So my question is: is there something I can read that specifically links concepts of consciousness to Popper-derived falsifiability ideas?

naveensundar 15y ago
Yes. You are spot on. I am not able to find readable survey-type articles other than the Wikipedia article on solipsism, but the idea you described is kind of folk-knowledge among really good philosophers of mind. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism#Falsifiability_and_testability http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism#Falsifiability_and_te... I see your email in your profile. If I come across something more solid I will pass it on to you/edit this comment.
Alex3917 15y ago
Not sure about Popper, but you might also be interested in this book: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Consciousness_Studies http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Consciousness_Studies It tackles a lot of the philosophical problems around consciousness. I haven't read the whole thing because it's very technical and not always the best written, but what I've read is kind of interesting.