9 Comments
User's avatar
Paul Wakfer's avatar

In your essay re Dawkins, you write:

"And there is no reason to think that Claude feels anything at all. I am sure Claude can draw on its training data to wax poetic about orgasm, but that doesn’t mean it has ever felt one."

I would go much further and phrase this: And there is total reason to think that Claude cannot feel anything at all. I am sure Claude can draw on its training data to wax poetic about orgasm (or any other emotion), but that doesn’t mean it has the biological/biochemical basis to have ever felt one.

Stephen Bero's avatar

Those graphics of the elementary particles are wonderful! They got me thinking about one of my objections to the pseudoscience of panpsychism. Since energy is transmitted by particles exchanges, where is the "consciousness" particle?

Massimo Pigliucci's avatar

Yeah, not sure if you've come across it, but this article by Sabine Hossenfelder nails it:

https://lede-v2.nautil.us/electrons-dont-think-237721

Of course she was told that she missed the point, because panpsychism generates no predictions at all about the physical world. Which means panpsychists are dualists. Which is a non-starter as far as I'm concerned.

Stephen Bero's avatar

Thanks, Professor! I follow Sabine but had missed that article. Yeah, a "theory" with no predictive power is a non-starter with me, too.

Mike Kentrianakis's avatar

I can’t speak for Dawkins and AI’s being conscious, but I can say yesterday was a watershed in my history of using AI in that it wrote, “I do not know…” 😆

Massimo Pigliucci's avatar

Well, as you know, that's the beginning of wisdom...

Ed Buckner's avatar

Aaaacckk--my list is way too long already. Seriously--thanks!

Massimo Pigliucci's avatar

I hear you, friend!