As a neuro-guy myself, I would say your split-brain example is excellent as a starting point but doesn't go far enough. There are hundreds of anatomical circuits, each of which competes for conscious attention and control of our behavior on a mome…
As a neuro-guy myself, I would say your split-brain example is excellent as a starting point but doesn't go far enough. There are hundreds of anatomical circuits, each of which competes for conscious attention and control of our behavior on a moment by moment basis. Most of that goes on with no awareness. So I think that idea that a mind has to be aware of itself as a mind in order to qualify is too restrictive.
Interesting and good to know. I suspected as much, particularly when you look at how much of the brain's activity is inhibitory on other parts of the brain.
Hobbes wrote about at least a metaphorically similar thing long ago.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leviathan_(Hobbes_book)
As a neuro-guy myself, I would say your split-brain example is excellent as a starting point but doesn't go far enough. There are hundreds of anatomical circuits, each of which competes for conscious attention and control of our behavior on a moment by moment basis. Most of that goes on with no awareness. So I think that idea that a mind has to be aware of itself as a mind in order to qualify is too restrictive.
Interesting and good to know. I suspected as much, particularly when you look at how much of the brain's activity is inhibitory on other parts of the brain.