Re: Consciousness: A Useless Hypothesis

From: John Clark (jonkc@worldnet.att.net)
Date: Sat Jan 19 2002 - 22:25:56 MST


J. R. Molloy <jr@shasta.com> Wrote:

> When several people interact with each other, we thereby
>confirm our sentience

I don't need to confirm my own consciousness I know it from direct
experience, I know of your intelligence from direct experience too
but as for your sentience, well it seem a reasonable hypothesis,

> Sentience usually means feeling or sensation as distinguished
>from perception and thought. People interact with each other's
>sentience all the time.

There is no way, absolutely no way I can interact directly with your
feelings, even assuming you have feelings, I can only interact with
your behavior.

>There's no such thing as "consciousness" [...] People interact with
>each other's sentience all the time.

So sentience exists but consciousness does not. Huh?

>and the models it helps us form are all wrong.

One of the most important things people use their brains for is
in predicting the behavior of our fellow human beings, I like to see
you try that if you don't assume they are conscious.

> Wrong! I do not equate intelligent behavior with "consciousness"

Baloney.

>I don't believe in anything.

Do you really believe that?

       John The Computational Automaton jonkc@att.net



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