Immunity: Gamma Delta T cells hunt with precision (Introduction)

by dhw, Thursday, November 15, 2018, 10:16 (1988 days ago) @ David Turell

DAVID: Note the bold in what is quoted above from the article. A molecule without a brain knows what to do. No other controls found, Obviously designed to be automatic. Just a programmed response to stimuli.

dhw: As usual, you switch from cells to molecules. But yes, “my” scientists believe that cells are intelligent even though they do not have brains. And why do you ignore all the attributes of intelligence that I have listed? Do you want me to bold them? Or do you not agree that the ability to learn and to make judgements denotes intelligence? Not comparable to human intelligence, of course, but not even you would limit the possession of intelligence to humans.

DAVID: Not a switch. All cellular activity is down through actions of molecules, which act purposefully, by design. The intelligence is in the design of molecular response, and not due to intelligent action by molecules.

You know as well as I do that there are tens of thousands of molecules in a single cell, and of course all cellular activity takes place through their actions. The question is what DETERMINES their actions. I do not say that my arms, legs, mouth, hands, fingers are intelligent. Their actions are determined by what I would like to think of as the intelligent “me”. Similarly I (and “my” scientists) propose that the actions of the molecules are determined by the intelligent cell or cell community. Now perhaps you will tell us why you do not regard the ability to learn and to make judgements as an attribute of intelligence.