Human Consciousness: how we observe (Humans)

by dhw, Monday, August 15, 2016, 12:17 (3024 days ago) @ David Turell

dhw: Your comment seems to me a bit oversimplified. I would argue that processing information, communicating it, making decisions based upon it, and acting upon those decisions are all characteristics of consciousness (not to be confused with self-awareness), of which there are many different levels. These characteristics are common to all organisms, ranging from bacteria through to ants, humming birds, dolphins, chimps and ourselves. Where, then, does the material end and the immaterial begin? If dualism is true, then ALL organisms are dualistic. In the “more philosophy” post, you say are still with Descartes. You probably know that Descartes considered our fellow animals to be automatons (just as you think bacteria are), without a “soul”. Are you with him in confining immaterial consciousness to humans? If not, please explain what attributes, in addition to the above, you yourself regard as essential to a definition of immaterial consciousness.-DAVID: No, I'm with Descartes up to the point that he excludes our fellow multicellular animals. In the Jewish religion they have their own special kind of soul, and that special kind of soul was used by Caesar, our last dog, to bring us Jack, our current dog. We have discussed it with the native Tlingets in Alaska who agreed with us. Too long a story to cover here. Soul and immaterial consciousness are part of one and the same construction and with death returns to join the universal consciousness, which some religions, not Jewish, refer to as heaven.-You left out the list of characteristics (now in bold), and I would still be interested to know what other attributes you regard as essential to a definition of immaterial consciousness. The reason for my persisting is of course that if you believe Caesar has his own “special kind of soul”, why can't you believe that Billy Bacterium also has his own “special kind of soul”? (Alternatively, why can't you believe that both Billy and Caesar have no "soul"?) Please remember that your Caesar's "special soul" does not have a brain.