(October 28, 2013 at 8:51 pm)apophenia Wrote: …it is safe to say that the proposition that the mind is a productof the brain is a scientific fact…Your bias shows. From a scientifically neutral position, the brain could just as easily mediate of facilitate mind. Saying that mind is a product of the brain comes from your philosophical interpretation of the data.
(October 28, 2013 at 8:51 pm)apophenia Wrote: …I'm not a fan of the way the concept of 'emergence' is used, both by professionals and non-professionals, and imo, saying that consciousness is 'an emergent property of the brain' is little more than hand-waving the problem asideI could not agree more.
(October 28, 2013 at 8:51 pm)apophenia Wrote: …The key point is that dualism itself doesn't actually explain anything either; it's just kicking the can down the road. "A seperate substance is responsible for consciousness." "Well, how does that second substance give rise to consciousness?" "I dunno; it just does." … How does this other substance give rise to mind, qualia, and consciousness?)This is not a fair criticism, though often repeated. You never ask what is it about matter that allows it to give rise to physical properties, do you?
