PERS 2002 Exam 1
Key Concepts:
The Mind-Body Problem is that of defining the relationship between
the mind and the physical brain (and other parts of the body) – are
mental experiences in the mind separate from the brain, or are they
the brain?
Two main philosophical intuitions in conflict are how we can 1) be
free, meaningful beings that live in a meaningful world that also 2) live
in a world defined by physical science as meaningless, made of unfree,
mindless atoms etc.
The mind-body problem matters because it helps us determine the
truth of concepts like the soul, whether certain beings have
consciousness (ourselves vs. animals), if we have free will, what our
personal identity is, etc.
The Westworld TV series depicts a fictional world with creatures who
are living in a simulated environment playing the roles and mimicking
the human mind, but not human
Descartes describes consciousness as the mark of the mental (I think
therefore I am)
Phenomenal consciousness is described as having an experience,
such as hearing the sound of a fridge though you may not be explicitly
thinking about it
Access consciousness is described as being able to access and
translate that sensory experience into something you can relate to
others (becoming explicitly aware of the fridge) – what psychologists
are mainly concerned about
Dualism is the belief in a mind alongside/separate from the body,
while physicalism posits that everything, including the mind, is
physical matter
Descartes’ argument from Indubitability is that he is more certain
that he is a thinking thing rather than a physical thing (I doubt my
body more than my mind)
Leibniz’s Law declares two things with different properties cannot be
identical – they must have the exact same properties
Substance Dualism defines the mind and the body as separate
things (soul alongside/attached to body)
, o Its advantages – intuitive, religiously compelling, allows for
possibility of afterlife
o Its disadvantages – not scientific neurologically, doesn’t explain
causation between a mental state and physical action
Dual aspect/property Dualism declares that the brain/mind is
physical and has both physical and mental aspects
o Its advantages – intuitive, compelling, explains causal
interactionism
o Its disadvantages – limits explanatory power of neuroscience,
explains mind-body causation at the cost of making conscious
states not real causes
The Identity theory declares that a brain state is the same as a
mental state
o Its advantages – simple, intuitive, scientific, explains mind-body
causation
o Its disadvantages – does not capture phenomenal
consciousness or multiple realizability of mental states
The Knowledge Argument relating to the Identity Theory states that
knowing everything there is to know about color is not the same as
experiencing what it’s like to see that color (knowledge is not the same
as feelings) - Suppose Mary grows up colorblind and learns all the
physical facts about color and color vision. If physicalism is true, she
should know everything about color. But when she finally sees red, she
learns what it is like to experience red.
The Android Argument questions: can robots still think or love if
they don't have a brain? If you meet a Martian that reacts exactly as
we do when he is hit, is he truly experiencing pain or just mimicking
what we would do. The Identity theory disproves this argument
Functionalism states that brain states are essentially roles to play
that the mind creates
o Its advantages – scientific, explains mind-body causation
o Its disadvantages - does not capture phenomenal
consciousness
The Madman pain objection is that the pain a madman experiences
may be completely different from that of a normal person, showing
that roles are not all the same
The Westworld pain objection is that westworld creatures could just
be imitating the role of experiencing things, and not actually making
mind-body connections
Key Concepts:
The Mind-Body Problem is that of defining the relationship between
the mind and the physical brain (and other parts of the body) – are
mental experiences in the mind separate from the brain, or are they
the brain?
Two main philosophical intuitions in conflict are how we can 1) be
free, meaningful beings that live in a meaningful world that also 2) live
in a world defined by physical science as meaningless, made of unfree,
mindless atoms etc.
The mind-body problem matters because it helps us determine the
truth of concepts like the soul, whether certain beings have
consciousness (ourselves vs. animals), if we have free will, what our
personal identity is, etc.
The Westworld TV series depicts a fictional world with creatures who
are living in a simulated environment playing the roles and mimicking
the human mind, but not human
Descartes describes consciousness as the mark of the mental (I think
therefore I am)
Phenomenal consciousness is described as having an experience,
such as hearing the sound of a fridge though you may not be explicitly
thinking about it
Access consciousness is described as being able to access and
translate that sensory experience into something you can relate to
others (becoming explicitly aware of the fridge) – what psychologists
are mainly concerned about
Dualism is the belief in a mind alongside/separate from the body,
while physicalism posits that everything, including the mind, is
physical matter
Descartes’ argument from Indubitability is that he is more certain
that he is a thinking thing rather than a physical thing (I doubt my
body more than my mind)
Leibniz’s Law declares two things with different properties cannot be
identical – they must have the exact same properties
Substance Dualism defines the mind and the body as separate
things (soul alongside/attached to body)
, o Its advantages – intuitive, religiously compelling, allows for
possibility of afterlife
o Its disadvantages – not scientific neurologically, doesn’t explain
causation between a mental state and physical action
Dual aspect/property Dualism declares that the brain/mind is
physical and has both physical and mental aspects
o Its advantages – intuitive, compelling, explains causal
interactionism
o Its disadvantages – limits explanatory power of neuroscience,
explains mind-body causation at the cost of making conscious
states not real causes
The Identity theory declares that a brain state is the same as a
mental state
o Its advantages – simple, intuitive, scientific, explains mind-body
causation
o Its disadvantages – does not capture phenomenal
consciousness or multiple realizability of mental states
The Knowledge Argument relating to the Identity Theory states that
knowing everything there is to know about color is not the same as
experiencing what it’s like to see that color (knowledge is not the same
as feelings) - Suppose Mary grows up colorblind and learns all the
physical facts about color and color vision. If physicalism is true, she
should know everything about color. But when she finally sees red, she
learns what it is like to experience red.
The Android Argument questions: can robots still think or love if
they don't have a brain? If you meet a Martian that reacts exactly as
we do when he is hit, is he truly experiencing pain or just mimicking
what we would do. The Identity theory disproves this argument
Functionalism states that brain states are essentially roles to play
that the mind creates
o Its advantages – scientific, explains mind-body causation
o Its disadvantages - does not capture phenomenal
consciousness
The Madman pain objection is that the pain a madman experiences
may be completely different from that of a normal person, showing
that roles are not all the same
The Westworld pain objection is that westworld creatures could just
be imitating the role of experiencing things, and not actually making
mind-body connections
