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But is consciousness even a thing? Shouldn't the burden of proof be on the one making a claim that there exists something called consciousness? If they cannot s
by potamic 11mo ago
But is consciousness even a thing? Shouldn't the burden of proof be on the one making a claim that there exists something called consciousness? If they cannot show evidence that such a thing exists or may exist, then for all purposes it does not exist.
- amenhotep 11mo agoIf you want to pretend you don't exist, that's your business. I think we both know you do.
- potamic 10mo agoThat's not how science works. You have to devise an experiment that can independently validate the assertion.
- wat10000 11mo agoI don’t need to prove it to anybody. I know it’s a thing, that’s good enough for me.
- potamic 10mo agoIt's not good enough for science. How do you approach it so it can be independently verified?
- wat10000 10mo agoThat’s why it’s such a hard problem. We barely have the language to talk about it. We have no way to observe it in other people. We have no way to measure it. And we have no idea how these things could even be done in theory.
- potamic 10mo agoOne could say the same thing about a higher power as well. But the scientific stance is clear on that one.
- wat10000 10mo agoSort of. Many people state a direct experience with a higher power as the source of their belief in one, so it is similar. But not quite the same, because consciousness is the thing doing the experiencing. It’s more fundamental in that way. The experience of a higher power could be false, in that it’s not really a higher power. But it is some experience. Consciousness can’t be false in that way. These debates always leave me wondering if some people aren’t actually conscious. Some of these arguments wouldn’t make any sense to someone who actually experiences qualia. I liken it to the old debate over the existence of mental imagery, which was finally settled as being something that some people have and some don’t. But until that was figured out, the two sides just didn’t comprehend each other.