Intelligence & Evolution (Evolution)

by Balance_Maintained , U.S.A., Friday, November 22, 2013, 15:58 (4018 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: David, however, insists that cells are automatons, and so whatever innovations they have come up with can only have been preprogrammed by his god. Our difference is therefore not really one of definition at all. It is David's insistence that cells are automatons, and that divine preprogramming is the only explanation for innovations.
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> Agreed-David defines them at the stage that I labeled aware, which is, the ability to detect and act upon things outside of yourself, but not possessing any form of self-identity or the identity of others beyond a purely mechanical state. -DHW is defining them at the stage that I labeled them at the stage of self-conscious, which is, they are able to reason and plan for the future, which requires abstract thought as well as the awareness of identity of both themselves and others. -The reason I make the distinction is actually immensely practical in the discussion. It provides intermediary steps between the cut and dry definitions. Intelligence has to do more with memory and function than it does understanding and reasoning. An intelligent creature can take in information and apply that information in the context that it was received. What it CAN'T do, is to apply abstract reasoning and future planning based on prior experience. That to me is where the whole house of cards around your intelligent cell falls down. In terms of magnitudes of complexity, the intelligent cell far, far, far exceeds the complexity that we have witnessed, and cells are incredibly complex as they are. The ability to learn, remember, recall, communicate, reason, plan, and apply are all far far beyond the scope of simple intelligence. -In David's view on the other hand, the complexity is not much greater than things we are already able to accomplish with fairly basic computer programs. Define a set of tasks, states, parameters, and variables, and then give the instructs as to how to handle them.

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What is the purpose of living? How about, 'to reduce needless suffering. It seems to me to be a worthy purpose.