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| Group: |
sci.philosophy.meta |
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| Author: |
pk@epsilon.co.nz |
| Subject: |
Unusual Perspectives |
| Body: |
I draw the attention to this group to my recently published work
"Unusual Perspectives". The following synopsis will give an indication
of why the book may well be of interest to many users.
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Synopsis of =93Unusual Perspectives=94
Preface and Introduction: Basis and nature of the work, brief
indication of content.
Ch 1: Questions the certainty of our popularly assumed arboreal
ancestry, provides a brief, fairly mainstream picture of the
development of pre-human species from an engineering perspective, then
culminates in an original hypothesis which proposes that the
development of our remarkable cognitive abilities may have been
driven, not so much by tool-use or social interaction, but rather by
the pressures of intra-species conflict. The subsequent extension to
the externally stored form of imagination that we know as language is
also covered here.
Ch 2: A bridge to Ch 3 which briefly covers the likely origins of
primitive belief systems.
Ch 3: Examination and classification of more recent and more complex
belief systems (described as =93fantasies=94) including the empiricist
=93scientific=94 fantasy which is, in this section, carefully delineated
by the expression =93Common Sense=94, meaning, in this work, shared
sensory experience. A clear distinction is made between this semantic
device and more trivial uses of the term =93common sense=94.
Ch 4: A justification, based on practicality, for the preferential
adoption of Common Sense, which is the predominant fantasy adopted in
the rest of the book. Also presents the argument that we are all tacit
subscribers to the fantasy of Common Sense at heart.
Ch 5: A review of the history and development of computing machines
and their relationship to neural entities. Introduces new terminology
to provide greater clarity to the subsequent discussion of the
relationship between non-living machines and mind.
Ch 6: An overview of some evolutionary and structural aspects of the
brain and other components of the nervous system leads into a
discussion of the nature of consciousness. Some novel interpretations
arise, particularly when the central nervous system, and particularly
the function that represents consciousness, is viewed in the context
of being merely a navigator, a servant of the society of cells that
comprise an individual. The model of reward of this navigational
entity for pattern recognition is examined in relation to some
uniquely human behaviors such as sport and humor.
Ch 7: A mainstream account of the development of life on Earth with
minor, mostly stylistic, embellishments. This and the preceding
chapters provide the back-drop against which subsequent arguments are
to be developed.
Ch 8: A very radical view of Economics which postulates that money
equates to gravity! Hard to swallow perhaps, but when our currently
accepted physical processes are factored in, this position appears to
be unassailable. The less rigorous but related concept that money
equates to energy is crucial to later chapters. While it is shown that
matter, information and Imagination are also components of money, it
is further argued with some rigor that these, too, may ultimately
considered to be driven by gravity.
Ch 9: One of the tacit myths that have become embedded in scientific
inquiry is that some kind of ultimate theory can be found that can be
applied at any scale. This myth is exhumed and re-examined in this
chapter and it is concluded that the =93one size fits all=94 approach to
the interpretation of scientific observations may, perhaps, have no
validity. This has a strong bearing on arguments introduced in the
next chapter.
Ch 10: Teleology is the bete noir of conventional science today. This
chapter argues that perhaps the teleological baby has been thrown out
with the bathwater of superstition. We assume individual purposiveness
in our everyday lives and in all our scientific endeavors. To deny it
in non-human systems is to imply our possession of something like a
"divine spark". It is argued that secularism may be rescued from this
dilemma by acceptance of the possibility of a teleological process
which is not necessarily associated with "intelligence" Various other
aspects of this hypothesis are considered.
Ch 11: The "cosmic coincidences" pertaining to fundamental constants
which seem to uniquely permit our existence have been discussed at
length by physicists in many books but perhaps most exhaustively in
the review by Barrow and Tipler "The Anthropic Cosmological
Principle". In contrast, the present work highlights the more
"downstream" effects with which we are more familiar. The unique, and
timely, abundance of atoms such as carbon and oxygen which are
essential for our structures and metabolism, and furthermore, of
elements such as copper and silicon without which the developments of
modern technology could never have been possible. Arguments are given
to support these claims. The teleological process is posited to hold
equal philosophical sway with the anthropic self-selection and =93many
worlds=94 hypotheses but, for the pragmatist, would appear to be the
better option.
Ch 12: Extrapolates present exponential trends as exemplified by
"Moore's Law" to make a reasonable prediction of the inevitable
development of the Internet into a new, dominant, and more cognitive
life-form.
Ch 13: Considers what is, in a teleological framework at least, the
effective redundancy of humankind, having soon fulfilled its function
of creating the new life-form. Observes that we should be ready and
willing to form a symbiotic relationship with this new entity.
Ch 14: Examines the convergence of some key technologies, the synergy
of which lends even more impetus to the overall rate of change,
culminating in a very rapid, almost explosive, advance towards the
advent of virtually unlimited clean energy derived from nuclear
fusion. Thus, extreme changes in our world may be expected to take
place not over centuries, as is commonly supposed, but over just a few
decades. Evidence to support this radical notion is presented and some
of the consequential ramifications discussed.
Ch 15: Considers further concurrent development of the new life-form,
culminating in the switch from silicon to diamond semiconductor
substrates and the possibility of quantum rather than bit-wise
computation becoming established. Looks at diamond produced by
chemical vapor deposition and its importance to the evolutionary
process.
Ch 16: A picture is drawn of a very pleasant way of life which might
be ours for the taking if we are only smart enough to live peacefully
and to form a loose symbiotic relationship with the new predominant
life form.
Ch 17: Speculative musings as to the propagation and continuing
evolution of terrestrial and extra-terrestrial life, both endogenous
and exogenous. Addresses the question posed by Fermi and others "if
there are extra-terrestrial space travelers then why aren't they here?
Suggests a possible reason for the continued lack of success by SETI.
Debunks the commonly held notion that it is likely that humans will
one day travel extensively beyond the solar system.
Ch 18:. Comments upon some of the practical interim measures we need
to address in the period, maybe less than a quarter of a century,
before the world as we know it changes beyond recognition.
Ch 19: A recapitulation of the ground covered in previous chapters.
Ch 20: Postscript 1 - A brief interlude of metaphysical musings.
Ch 21: Postscript 2 - An attempt to provide a theist-friendly
interpretation of the themes presented.
Ch 22: After-word =96 Sign off
More information to be found on my website: http://www.unusual-perspectives=
..net
PK
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