We should not stop striving in Science and Philosophy when progress slows and we hit seemingly intractable difficulties — Does the Universe branch into different copies whenever a particle of light zigs this way when it could’ve zagged the other way according to the laws of Quantum Mechanics (QM)? QM is the most precise and accurate theory we have that underlies the microchips that power modern society, so this…

An examination of overconstrained logical systems — Does God Exist? To answer this question, some may appeal to Science and modern Cosmology to argue that the cosmos is so incredibly vast, complex, and wondrous that it’s unnecessary to invoke a supreme consciousness. Others see the same thing and use that for the exact opposite position, as undeniable proof of a…

Hi Chris, Thanks! And thanks for your thoughts. I'm happy that you found this useful and we find some common ground. All of my positions on Science, Philosophy, and God are tentative only and what makes the most sense to me currently, and are subject to refinement or outright change…

Why variations of “Trust the Science” is nonsense — I’m a true believer in Science and am formally trained in it. I strongly believe Science to be among the most powerful methods of inquiry that humanity has developed, permitting us to create the marvels of the modern world the increase of quality in life that comes from applying Science…

Hi Roman, I'm not familar with Thomas Campbell's work, so I can't comment on that. Just answering in terms of my understanding of Virtual Reality in the context the popular Simulation Hypothesis, that we and/or our entire universe is a simulation in some higher level universe or multiverse. (I really…

A tool to sharpen thinking and clarify implicit assumptions — The most fundamental issues in Science and Philosophy concern the nature, meaning, and relationship between: Physics: external objective physical reality of the cosmos Consciousness: internal subjective experience of consciousness Although these may appear to be distinct and even as opposite as possible, they’re deeply intertwined in the fundamental nature of…

Interesting topic! 3 comments... 1. Nature of Emergence I like to start simple with the analogy of waves of water. A wave is composed of water molecules, but takes on an emergent existence of its own described by wave equations that don't involve the underlying water molecules. It's possible that…

I suppose that all possible life or non-biological entities that exist in the world other than ourselves could potentially be lacking qualia. We assume other living people have that qualia, but there is no way to confirm either way. The only thing we can be sure of is our own…

On the limitations of Physicalism in understanding consciousness — I do not want to die. I REALLY do not want to die because I am terrified of the void and the nothingness that I would confront. It is from this desire not to die and the terror of death that the idea of Mind Uploading for eternal life is…