RE: Sam Harris On Defining Consciousness
August 27, 2015 at 2:49 am
(This post was last modified: August 27, 2015 at 2:53 am by robvalue.)
I find this all very interesting even if it's mostly over my head 
That's a good comment Rhonda that a good scienctist "never says never". I agree with the sentiment entirely, in theory.
However, the biggest barrier is solipsism though. It seems that I can genuinely never know that this is actually "reality" or that any other minds actually experience things anything like I do. It's the problem of confirmation: I have no independent observers to confer with.
How can this barrier ever come down? I genuinely don't know. It seems impossible. Any apparent disconnect from this reality into the "real reality" could still be part of this delusion.
To put it even more simply, how can I ever know I'm not dreaming? The answer to me seems to be that I can't, ever, for the same reasons.
I'm aware I'm using definitive language here which I don't like doing, but it seems like a logical barrier which will survive anything.

That's a good comment Rhonda that a good scienctist "never says never". I agree with the sentiment entirely, in theory.
However, the biggest barrier is solipsism though. It seems that I can genuinely never know that this is actually "reality" or that any other minds actually experience things anything like I do. It's the problem of confirmation: I have no independent observers to confer with.
How can this barrier ever come down? I genuinely don't know. It seems impossible. Any apparent disconnect from this reality into the "real reality" could still be part of this delusion.
To put it even more simply, how can I ever know I'm not dreaming? The answer to me seems to be that I can't, ever, for the same reasons.
I'm aware I'm using definitive language here which I don't like doing, but it seems like a logical barrier which will survive anything.
Feel free to send me a private message.
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Please visit my website here! It's got lots of information about atheism/theism and support for new atheists.
Index of useful threads and discussions
Index of my best videos
Quickstart guide to the forum


