Back to Home

God & Science Forum Message

Forums: Atm · Astrophotography · Blackholes · Blackholes2 · CCD · Celestron · Domes · Education
Eyepieces · Meade · Misc. · God and Science · SETI · Software · UFO · XEphem
RSS Button

Home | Discussion Forums | God and Science | Post
Login

Be the first pioneers to continue the Astronomy Discussions at our new Astronomy meeting place...
The Space and Astronomy Agora
Hi Harv

Forum List | Follow Ups | Post Message | Back to Thread Topics | In Response To
Posted by Paul R. Martin on May 20, 2004 16:07:29 UTC

Hi Harv,

Good to talk to you again.

"How's everything going?"

Very well, thank you. I am enjoying life immensely. How about you?

"So, Paul, I think your idealism has some merit."

So do I.

"...now I see that Logic cannot possibly exist without Mind."

I think it is also clear that Mind *can* possibly exist without Logic. There are many suggestions of this from daily life.

" Hence, it seems to me that a certain equivalence relationship exists between Mind and Logic"

Depending on what you mean by the qualifier "certain", I don't think you can draw this conclusion. Mind and Logic are not equivalent since Mind can possibly exist without Logic, but not the reverse.

"...and possibly Matter."

Nor do I think you can make this inference. I think David Chalmers has convincingly demonstrated that Matter *cannot* give rise to Mind. And, as John Wheeler has mused and expressed as "it from bit", it is conceivable that information *can* possibly give rise to matter.

Furthermore, in my opinion, Shannon's notion of information, which Gregory Bateson has summarized as "a difference that makes a difference", is incomplete. First of all "difference" in itself is a concept, and as you point out, concepts require Mind. Secondly neither Bateson nor Shannon talk about to whom or to what it makes a difference. In my opinion, the definition is complete only if you assume a Mind to whom the difference makes a difference. In other words, Mind, at base, is the capacity to know, and information is merely something that the mind can know. Information is a difference which makes a difference to the mind.

"That is, that might very well be the famous Trinity that we've all heard so much about."

I think that is a tortuous stretch for those who would like to believe it.

"Something to consider..."

I just did, and those are my thoughts.

Warm regards,

Paul

Follow Ups:

    Login to Post
    Additional Information
    Google
     
    Web www.astronomy.net
    DayNightLine
    About Astronomy Net | Advertise on Astronomy Net | Contact & Comments | Privacy Policy
    Unless otherwise specified, web site content Copyright 1994-2024 John Huggins All Rights Reserved
    Forum posts are Copyright their authors as specified in the heading above the post.
    "dbHTML," "AstroGuide," "ASTRONOMY.NET" & "VA.NET"
    are trademarks of John Huggins