(March 27, 2014 at 4:26 am)BrianSoddingBoru4 Wrote: But ALL organisms require chemistry to survive.
I had a sales rep who left me with a great idea loosely stated, "The answer to any question is: It depends."
ALL organisms require chemistry? Well, only loosely and only if you restrict yourself to the usual carbon based replicators that surround us.
My paraphrase of Schroedinger's definition of life is:
any self replicating pattern which can focus a stream of energy on itself in order to maintain or lower its own entropy.
Electronic based (e.g. computer viruses) only need chemistry insofar as they need impure silicon on which to reside.
Larger than mammal systems such as corporations, religions or societies only require chemistry because that is what makes up their subunits.
Hooloovoos (hyperintelligent shades of the color blue) only require properly shaped crystals for residence while interacting with other beings.
So, it depends on what definitions you use for 'require', 'chemistry', and 'organism.'...and probably 'survive.'
So how, exactly, does God know that She's NOT a brain in a vat?