slime mold decisions (Introduction)

by David Turell , Friday, June 10, 2016, 18:45 (3086 days ago) @ dhw


> dhw; I assume you think the planning was done by your God. If so, the “intelligently planned molecular responses” (without an autonomous guiding intelligence within the cell itself) would have had to incorporate solutions to every single new situation confronting unicellular organisms throughout the history of life. Alternatively, your God would have had to intervene personally in order to instruct the bacterium in ways of resisting antibiotics, or to shove the slime mould in the right direction. -You do not remember my description of what very simple organisms are capable of doing: Quorum sensing a group, sensing food, sensing noxious or dangerous substances or dangerous enemies, dumping their garbage. Finding a simple pathway by the strength of a signal chemical explains the slime mold in a maze. We just haven't had the research yet to follow the molecular reactions. God is not needed currently.
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> dhw: Why look for cellular intelligence? Because if organisms have an autonomous inventive or complexification mechanism, it can ONLY be run by the intelligence of the cell communities! And so if unicellular organisms are shown to be intelligent, this would add powerful support to the AIM hypothesis.-The mechanisms don't need intelligence to run them. They are not driving an automobile but sitting in a driverless automobile.