nyan_sandwich comments on The raw-experience dogma: Dissolving the “qualia” problem - Less Wrong

2 Post author: metaphysicist 16 September 2012 07:15PM

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Comment author: [deleted] 20 September 2012 10:17:46PM *  0 points [-]

You'll have to explain your position. I can't see it. To clarify what I think, take "me" as a node, and recursively build a causality graph (Pearl's thing) of all the causes that lead into that node. By some theorem somewhere, that graph will be connected. Then label that graph "my map of the universe" and label it's compressing model "physics". That is what "materialism" means to me.

I've just realized, tho, that the rest of you might attach a different concept to "materialism", but I don't know what it is. Can you give me a steel-man (or a straw man (or a nonmaterial entity)) version of what "materialism" means to you?

Comment author: Eugine_Nier 22 September 2012 03:43:05AM 0 points [-]

To clarify what I think, take "me" as a node, and recursively build a causality graph (Pearl's thing) of all the causes that lead into that node. By some theorem somewhere, that graph will be connected. Then label that graph "my map of the universe" and label it's compressing model "physics". That is what "materialism" means to me.

I think you are making a category error with respect to what Pearl's theory actually does.

Comment author: [deleted] 23 September 2012 12:42:55AM 0 points [-]

care to expand? His bayesian networks stuff is for modelling causal relationships. Am I confused?

Comment author: Eugine_Nier 24 September 2012 10:54:58PM 0 points [-]

This comment by Argency explains what I mean by causality being incompatible with pure materialism.