RE: Mind is the brain?
March 19, 2016 at 6:55 am
(This post was last modified: March 19, 2016 at 6:58 am by bennyboy.)
(March 18, 2016 at 9:10 pm)Thumpalumpacus Wrote:(March 18, 2016 at 2:31 pm)bennyboy Wrote: Nor has science proven itself up to the task of answering philosophical questions about things which aren't objectively observable.
Your problem is that mental activity -- i.e., mind -- has been observed, via MRI experiments which, uh, correlate areas of the brain with specific cognitive processes.
As to value of answering "philosophical" questions about things which aren't objectively observable, if you want to count the angels dancing on the head of a pin, go right ahead. You will still need to convince me, and no doubt others, of the value of your obscure musings.
This is a view typical of material monism, but there's a problem. Mind is subjective, and you are talking about objective measurements. You insist that those objective measurements ARE the same as the subjective experiences, but this is the exact definition of begging the question. There's no point finding out if mind is brain function if you are defining mind in terms of brain function-- blood flow, neural activity, brain waves, or otherwise.
This thread will just be your position and mine restated a hundred times, with no forward progress. That's because we are operating on different assumptions-- specifically, you are operating on a greater body of assumptions than I am, and thus you have a narrower view of what mind may/may not be.