All of Synergian's Comments + Replies

Okay, now I feel like I understand your main point better. 

I think I have just another point of view on the example. My point is that the example itself seems a bit artificial. 

The human brain still is not conquered by reductionist modeling. So we don't know yet if there is a possibility to reduce consciousness (we are talking about the feeling of joy, that means about brain and consciousness) to some systems and parts without losing crucial properties of consciousness. At any level. 

Bearing that in mind, the example seems a bit meaningless ... (read more)

I agree that a lower-level model doesn't mean more relevant. Also, I think that reductionism is a tool that can be relevant in certain contexts, as any other tool. In some others, it may not.

Wrong framework for the task

The latter may seem a bit rude, and I apologize. But it actually aims at what I see as the problem here: you started a human communication, then you restricted it from the start, and then generalized your observations while not being able to grasp anything about liking a beach at least. Looks like rationalization to soften your failure to un... (read more)

2Adam Zerner
No worries at all about sounding rude! I was a kid at the time I had those conversations with my mom and overall your reply sounds like it is good-spirited :) I'm a little confused about what the crux of your point is, and about where, if anywhere, we disagree. * I agree that tuning in to that sort of intuitive thinking would have been appropriate. * I agree that I was pretty obtuse in my not understanding why people enjoy the beach. * I disagree that the issue that Young Adam had was rationalizing (in this case). I think it was moreso that I kinda thought that low-level models were always better.

This text smells like pretty much emotional rationalization (in the psychological sense) of a certain biased point of view.

Actually, I'm not an enemy of narrow questions, and in the same way, I'm not an enemy of the plurality of meanings. The focused, narrow, formal approach is of great power indeed, but it is also restricted and new theories are being constructed again and again - outside of a narrow framework and back to some new one.

Consider a man who just learned to drink from a certain brown glass. Then, he sees a steel mug. They are quite different o... (read more)