RE: Conditional probability & continuity of consciousness (was: Re: FIN Again)

From: Charles Goodwin <cgoodwin.domain.name.hidden>
Date: Thu, 6 Sep 2001 10:28:10 +1200

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jesse Mazer [mailto:lasermazer.domain.name.hidden]
>
> Well, I hope you'd agree that which observer-moment I am
> right now is not a
> "matter of definition," but a matter of fact. My opinion is
> that the global
> measure on all observer-moments is not telling us something
> like the "number
> of physical instantiations" of each one, but rather the
> probability of
> *being* one particular observer-moment vs. some other one. I would be
> interested to hear what you think the measure means, though, since my
> version seems to require first-person facts which are separate from
> third-person facts (i.e., which observer-moment *I* am).

I don't see how you can talk about the "probability of being a particular observer moment". The probability is 1 at that moment! We
don't get dropped into observer moments from some metaphysical realm (like Fred Hoyle's flashlight-and-pigeonholes analogy in
"October the 1st is too late") - we ARE those observer moments. It's a bit like the probability of me being born as me. The
probability was 1, because otherwise I wouldn't be me! Similarly for this particular observer moment.

Charles
Received on Wed Sep 05 2001 - 15:37:38 PDT