Big brain evolution: learning new tasks (Evolution)

by David Turell , Monday, April 23, 2018, 18:26 (2404 days ago) @ dhw

dhw: It’s not clear to me what you are trying to tell us. We know that the implementation of new ideas involves using different parts of the brain. If it is the so-called “thinking cortex” that has expanded most, does that mean the expanding cortex caused our expanded thinking ability (pure materialism), which you reject? Or did our inventive s/s/c make ever greater demands on the pfc as the material control centre, which had to expand in order to send new instructions to the rest of the implementing brain? You only tell us WHERE, not how the s/s/c interfaces with the brain. But perhaps I’ve missed something.

DAVID: I'm simply describing where the brain's control centers do their job. And, yes, the very enlarged pfc allows the s/s/c much more complex thought, following my software/hardware analogy.

dhw: Back you go to “allows”. Following your analogy, yet again the enlarged pfc/hardware allows for the implementation of the more complex thought produced by the “soul” software. Only a materialist will argue that thought cannot be produced without a brain (and the materialist may be right), and any dualist who believes that the thinking “soul” survives the death of the brain but in life depends on the brain for its ability to think has missed the point of NDEs as evidence for his dualism.

Your usual confusion. The very complex pfc works with the s/s/c to create complex ideas. The s/s/c must use the pfc networks to create the complex concept to implement the active thought to the living person. I'm sure you think in words in your head as I do.If the brain is non-functional in NDE or death, the s/s/c operates differently. We have agreed to all of this in the past.