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Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Ok. Where can such creatures be found?

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Hi N.K.

They can only be found in thought experiments. If philosophical zombies are theoretically possible then physicalism ( scientific reductionism) is false.

To put it another way, it is false that the mind can be reduced to the function of the brain.

This is because humans have something "extra" ( call it a spark if you like).That philosophical zombies don't have.

As I said before, if philosophical zombies are logically impossible then physicalism is an adequate explanation. There is no "spark".


Regards

Tut

Tut, it is not only humans that have that "spark of life." All animals have that, what differentiates humanity is our ability to become self-aware and question who we are.

I agree tremendously with everything else.

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Originally Posted by bendingleconte

Tut, it is not only humans that have that "spark of life." All animals have that, what differentiates humanity is our ability to become self-aware and question who we are.

I agree tremendously with everything else.

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Hi bendingleconte,

I agree with what you are saying about animals.

From a dualist point of view... Yes, there is something it is like to be an certain type of animal. On this basis consciousness has a distinctive subjective character about it. This subjective character seems to extend to animals. It seems as though many animals have phenomenological consciousness (conscious of their environment).

The problem is that we don't know, 'what it is like' to be a dog or a cat. The other problem is that it is very difficult to come up with a suitable definition of consciousness.


Regards

Tut

By my own beliefs, I would say no. Without getting into the details, life is eternal, but not necessarily humanity. Humans came from life, but that doesn't mean that human beings will continue on as humans for eternity. First you have to believe that energy itself is life to fully understand.

With regards to your consciousness you are original born at your conception , with regards to your physical bean every thing that is born is born from a living creature so in essence you evolved at the birth of life 2 billion years ago here on earth and you have been alive ever since