Tag: Robert Lawrence Kuhn | Page 2

Abstract digital human face. Artificial intelligence concept of big data or cyber security. 3D illustration

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
January 12, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Closer to Truth (video series), Hubert Dreyfus (1929–2017), Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), Marvin Minsky on AI capabilities, Physicalism, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

If Consciousness Is Not Physical, How Can an AI Duplicate It?

_{Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviewed Berkeley philosopher Hubert Dreyfus on the question before his death in 2017} _{Denyse O'Leary
January 12, 2023

6

Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind}

At Closer to Truth, Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviewed the late philosopher Hubert Dreyfus (1929–2017) a couple of years back on the question “Is consciousness entirely physical.” The interview was released May 18, 2022 (10:03 min). Here’s the big question about consciousness, our inner experience of what things feel like. Is consciousness a product of the physical world alone? Because if consciousness is the output of the physical brain by itself, however complex, then consciousness as physicalism would defeat those who believe, or hope for, the existence of nonphysical realities. Some philosophers (physicalists) do maintain that consciousness is entirely physical or, more commonly, they dance around the point. For example, philosopher David Papineau said in 2020, “If only we could stop Read More ›

3D illustration of Escher's inspired stairs

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
January 9, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Mathematics, Physics

Tagged
Closer to Truth, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Roger Penrose}

How Surreal Artist MC Escher Influenced Physicist Roger Penrose

_{Escher’s mathematical art was all the more remarkable because he had no formal training in mathematics} _{Denyse O'Leary
January 9, 2023

4

Arts & Culture, Mathematics, Physics}

Last month, Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviewed eminent British mathematical physicist Sir Roger Penrose on a number of topics, including the influence of surrealist artist M. C. Escher (December 9, 2022/32:00 min). Here is a transcribed selection from the second part of the discussion in Part 1 above*, beginning around the 12-minute mark, with some notes: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: We talked about the impossible Penrose triangle which really opens up another area of your life in terms of visual representations of remarkable things. Penrose tiling really new ways of thing of seeing visual representation of fiery fundamental geometric and algebraic transformations and things. But what I wanted to ask you is, as youdeveloped that you had this interaction with the artist Read More ›

Lost and confused man walks puzzled on a penrose triangle. Perplexed person looks disoriented ahead, don't know which way to choose. Surreal and conceptual scene, mental maze, optical illusion

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
January 8, 2023

Categorized
Mathematics, Philosophy of Mind, Physics

Tagged
Closer to Truth, Computationalism, Consciousness, Idealism (philosophy), Physicalism, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Roger Penrose}

Nobelist Roger Penrose Talks About His Impossible Triangle

_{At Closer to Truth, the mathematical physicist explains to Robert Lawrence Kuhn how he understands the relationship between mathematics, the mind, and the physical world} _{Denyse O'Leary
January 8, 2023

8

Mathematics, Philosophy of Mind, Physics}

Last month, Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviewed eminent British mathematical physicist Sir Roger Penrose on the relationship between mathematics, the mind, and the physical universe (December 9, 2022/32:00 min). Penrose likes to illustrate the relationship between the three with an “impossible” triangle (see below). Here are a couple of transcribed selections from the first part of the discussion in Part 1*, concerning the Penrose Triangle, with some notes: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: Let’s start with your grand metaphysical framework, your three worlds — three mysteries: the physical world, the mental world, the platonic or mathematical world — each connected to the other two in your famous diagram of an equilateral triangle. What’s the origin of this vision of yours of foundational reality? Read More ›

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
January 4, 2023

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Closer to Truth (video series), Consciousness, Donald Hoffman, Evolution, Idealism, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

Brain Scientist: Consciousness Didn’t Evolve. It Creates Evolution

_{With a tremor in his voice, Donald Hoffman tells Robert Lawrence Kuhn that even the Big Bang must be understood in a universe where consciousness is fundamental} _{Denyse O'Leary
January 4, 2023

10

Philosophy of Mind}

In a recent episode of Closer to Truth, Robert Lawrence Kuhn interviewed University of California cognitive scientist Donald Hoffman on a challenging topic, “Why did consciousness emerge? (7:41 min, December 10, 2022): There was a time when there was no consciousness in our universe. Now there is. What caused consciousness to emerge? Did consciousness develop in the same way that, say, the liver or the eye developed, by random mutation and fitness selection during evolution? Inner experience seems to be radically different from anything else. Are we fooling ourselves? Donald Hoffman is the author of Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See and coauthor of Observer Mechanics: A Formal Theory Of Perception (Norton, 2000) A partial transcript and some Read More ›

zen garden meditation stone background with stone and lines in sand for relaxation balance and harmony spirituality or spa wellness

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
January 1, 2023

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind, Science

Tagged
Closer to Truth (video series), Consciousness, David Chalmers, Dualism, Panpsychism, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, soul}

Philosopher: I Accept Dualism But Don’t Believe in the Soul

_{David Chalmers, whose background is in physics, talks to Robert Lawrence Kuhn at Closer to Truth about his struggle to accept that the mind is immaterial} _{Denyse O'Leary
January 1, 2023

10

Philosophy of Mind, Science}

David Chalmers, the New York University philosopher who coined the term “Hard Problem of Consciousness” was willing to take the risk of openly identifying as a dualist — that is, he believes that, on evidence, the human mind is immaterial. On that view, widely accepted worldwide, the human being has a dual nature: a material body and an immaterial mind. But Chalmers draws the line at believing in the existence of a soul. Here is his discussion at Closer to Truth with Robert Lawrence Kuhn, “Is the ‘Soul’ Immortal?” (May 4, 2021, 9:06 min): The claim that human beings have or are an ‘immortal soul’ goes back to the ancient Greeks, if not further. In a pre-scientific world, it would Read More ›

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
December 25, 2022

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Artificial intelligence as sentient, Darwin Devolves, Evolution theory, Max Tegmark, Max Tegmark on transhumanism, Michael Behe, Michael Levin, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

Physicist Max Tegmark Worries About Intelligent AI’s “Suffering”

_{What strikes me about Tegmark’s approach to the question is its fundamental lack of seriousness} _{Denyse O'Leary
December 25, 2022

8

Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind}

In a recent interview, MIT theoretical physicist Max Tegmark talked to Robert Lawrence Kuhn at Closer to Truth about “transhuman brains” (Dec 20, 2022, 8:43 min): Transhuman brains are the melding of hyper-advanced electronics and super-artificial intelligence (AI) with neurobiological tissue. The goal is not only to repair injury and mitigate disease, but also to enhance brain capacity and boost mental function. What is the big vision, the end goal — how far can transhuman brains go? What does it mean for individual consciousness and personal identity? Is virtual immortality possible? What are the ethics, the morality, of transhuman brains? What are the dangers? Here’s a partial transcript and comments: Max Tegmark: I think it’s pretty clear that artificial intelligence Read More ›

Sea soul. Abstract marine backgrounds with sun beam and underwater landscape

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News
Date
September 29, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
J. P. Moreland, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Soul (concept)}

Why should we believe that the human mind is immortal?

_{Philosopher Moreland: Think of the soul like a chest of drawers and think of the mind and the spirit like two drawers in the chest of drawers} _{News
September 29, 2022

3

Philosophy of Mind}

Philosopher J. P. Moreland offers some thoughts at Closer to Truth (September 14, 2022) J.P. Moreland: (1:49) Think of the soul like a chest of drawers and think of the mind and the spirit like two drawers in the chest of drawers. I am a soul I’m an immaterial substance. Within me are different faculties, different ranges of powers or abilities. My mind is a faculty of the soul. My spirit is a different faculty of the soul. Now, you can’t separate my mind from my soul like you can [separate] the legs of a table and put them in different places. So the legs of a table would be called “separable parts.” They can be separated from the whole Read More ›

Human hand fine tuning levels on professional audio equipment

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News
Date
September 18, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Fine-tuning of universe for life, Quentin Persifor Smith, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

Philosopher: “Universe Fine-Tuned for Life” is Just Folk Belief!

_{Do physicists claim that the universe is fine-tuned for life only when writing for a popular audience — and not in their professional work?} _{News
September 18, 2022

6

Philosophy, Science}

Closer to Truth recently published a revealing podcast in which host Robert Lawrence Kuhn asked late Western Michigan University philosopher Quentin Persifor Smith (1952–2020), “What Does a Fine-Tuned Universe Mean?” (Aug 31, 2022). Smith iss esteemed for his work on philosophy of time, philosophy of religion, naturalism and atheism, philosophy of Big Bang cosmology and quantum cosmology. So can we really draw conclusions from the fact that our universe appears fine-tuned for life? Kuhn’s questions and Smith’s responses help us understand why the question remains controversial. A partial transcript and notes follow. Quentin Persifor Smith: (1:43) If the universe is causally deterministic, you can take whatever happens at any point and infer backwards that this is what must have happened, Read More ›

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 8, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind, Physics, Science

Tagged
God (nature of God), Julian Baggini, Origin of life hypotheses, qualia, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

Philosophy: Can Red Have “Redness” If No Self Perceives It?

_{As Closer to Truth’s Robert Kuhn interviews philosopher Julian Baggini, they now tackle the question of “qualia” — part of the nature of conscious experiences} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 8, 2022

9

Philosophy of Mind, Physics, Science}

Yesterday, we looked at philosopher Julian Baggini’s argument that the unified self is an illusion. He spoke about this in the context of a discussion with Closer to Truth’s Robert Lawrence Kuhn. Kuhn, nearly midway through, steers the conversation toward qualia, that is, the inner experience we have of things. Red, an often-used example, is a color in the spectrum but it is also, for many, an experience. Serious and influential books have been written (2005 and 2017) about the history of the color and the experiences it evokes. Questions are interspersed between exchanges in the transcribed dialogue: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: (3:23) Let’s distinguish two factors that are flying around here. One is the concept of self — what it Read More ›

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Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 7, 2022

Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Julian Baggini, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Self as concept}

Another Philosopher Argues That the Unified Self Is an Illusion

_{At Closer to Truth, Lawrence Kuhn interviews Julian Baggini, who claims, in terms reminiscent of Thomas Metzinger, that a unified self is an illusion} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 7, 2022

7

Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind}

University of Kent philosopher Julian Baggini, author of The Great Guide: What David Hume can teach us about being human and living well (2021), was interviewed recently by Robert Lawrence Kuhn at Closer to Truth (September 1, 2022). In the interview, Dr. Baggini asserted that, while consciousness is not an illusion, a unified self that persists through time is: Here is a partial transcript, interspersed with questions that arise from the discussion: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: Julian, my own internal feeling of awareness my consciousness seems like the most obvious fundamental thing in the world. You tell me it’s an illusion Why? Julian Baggini: (0:11) To be honest, consciousness isn’t an illusion. I mean clearly there’s awareness of the world. I Read More ›

A girl in a hat on top of a hill in silence and loneliness admires the calm natural landscape and balloons.

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Michael Egnor
Date
December 7, 2020

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Closer to Truth (video series), design inference, Featured, Franz Brentano, intentionality, Materialism, Matter, mind, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Teleology, Thomas Aquinas, William Dembski}

Why Consciousness Shows That Materialism Is False

_{The mind refutes materialism in a rather straightforward way} _{Michael Egnor
December 7, 2020

5

Philosophy of Mind}

My friend and colleague Bill Dembski, a leading advocate of intelligent design of the universe and life forms, has done a superb short interview with Robert Lawrence Kuhn on Closer to Truth. Bill takes a position that will surprise many fellow Christians—he doesn’t believe that consciousness represents an insurmountable challenge to materialism: Bill makes the point that much of the popular argument hinges on shifting meanings of “materialism” and “consciousness.” By contrast, he argues, the design inference in biology is a much more effective challenge to materialism. I agree that design in nature is an effective challenge to materialism. But I also believe that the mind refutes materialism in a rather straightforward way—and in much the same way that evidence Read More ›