Mind and Consciousness Questions

7/29/2019 Mind and Consciousness Questions

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Mind and Consciousness Questions


Roger Chung

PHL/443

January 28, 2013

Steven Wyre


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Section One

After reading Pinkers article, the hard problem that arises is, So neuroscientists are well

on the way to identifying the neural correlates of consciousness, a part of the Easy Problem. But

what about explaining how these events actually cause consciousness in the sense of inner

experience--the Hard Problem? (Pinker, 2007).

I find it hard to believe that no answer can be produced from these questions. Is there

even a problem? The answer from Francis Crick, to me, cannot be answered any better. Francis

Crick called it "the astonishing hypothesis"--the idea that our thoughts, sensations, joys and

aches consist entirely of physiological activity in the tissues of the brain. Consciousness does not

reside in an ethereal soul that uses the brain like a PDA; consciousness is the activity of the brain

(Pinker, 2007).

Section Two


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According to Merriam-Webster (2013), syntactic: of, relating to, or according to the rules

of syntax or syntactics.

According to Merriam-Webster (2013), semantic: of relating to meaning of language.

Two examples of syntactic that I said to my daughters were, Smile ear to ear, and stand still

like a statue.

Two examples of semantics were just recent. We had an issue at work and I told the day

manager that I wasnt able to call the customer and to have the night manager call when she got

in, the customer never got called because the day manager thought I said I called the customer

so the night manager would not have too. Another example was with a friend of mine. Some

friends and I were supposed to get together one night and I ended not being able to make it. I

told one friend why I couldnt go, but come to find out, he made a totally different excuse for

me. Needless to say, I was not happy with His excuse for me.

The use of semantic and syntactic is useful in the quest for self-aware computers because

these computers need to be able to understand and distinguish what is being said exactly.

Computers may not be able to produce an answer if words are used in the wrong fashion.

Semantics is more important because you can change the meaning of what you are saying

by adding some words or even taking words out. That is why things are misinterpreted and can

make a mess out of a situation. Perfect example of semantics is with my wife. She is not fluent

in English like myself and has a hard time understanding people and takes things the wrong way.

If someone tries to explain something to her and does not do it well, she will take it the wrong

way because she just does not understand the complexity of the English language.


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Section Three

Scientists don't fully understand what is happening in the brain that creates what

we call consciousness, but researchers like Damasio are refining our knowledge about how firing

neurons can lead to our thoughts and experience of the world (Hirschman, 2010).

It seems like there will never be an absolute answer to whether the mind and

consciousness are the same. I believe they are the same because when you are conscious, you

are aware of your surroundings and can have thought. If you are in some vegetative state, you

are still conscious, and perhaps still have thoughts racing through your mind. In order to have

thought process, you have to be alive have some brain function.

Section Four

I find it difficult to believe a computer being self-aware . These are machines built and

programmed by humans and can only do as programmed. I am aware that the science and

technology of robots is growing more advanced each day, but for a computer to know that it

actually exists and can be aware, is way beyond our technology right now.

We may not even be alive to witness something like that. So what would it take to make

a computer self-aware? Some would argue that it is simply a matter of complexity, that when

computers reach a certain level of complexity they will become self-aware. If it is simply a

matter of complexity, after all the human brain is nothing more than a very complex processor

that uses electrochemical reactions rather than just electrical, then the day will surely come

(Cook,).


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I agree with Cook that a day will come when computers will be self-aware. It will be

years from now, but I think that we have to fully understand our brain first to even think about

making a complex processor to make computer self-aware of itself and its surroundings.


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Reference

Pinker, S. (2007, January). THE MYSTERY OF Consciousness.. TIME, 169( 5), 58-70.

syntactic. (2013). In Merriam-Webster. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-

webster.com/dictionary/syntactic

semantic. (2013). In Merriam-Webster. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-

webster.com/dictionary/semantic?show=0&t=1359434942

HIRSCHMAN, D. (2010). What is Consciousness. Retrieved from http://bigthink.com/going-

mental/what-is-consciousness

Cook, R. (). Will computers become self aware?. Retrieved from

http://www.thekeyboard.org.uk/computers%20become%20self%20aware.htm

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Mind and Consciousness Questions