RE: More is Better (was RE: another puzzle)

From: Jonathan Colvin <jcolvin.domain.name.hidden>
Date: Thu, 30 Jun 2005 19:07:35 -0700

Russell Standish wrote:

> This leads to a speculation that memories are an essential
> requirement for consciousness...

I'm sure they are. Awareness with no memory would be complete confusion
(you'd have no idea what any of your sense qualia refer to; or of much else,
either). That's why consciousness is *not* a binary phenomenon. As babies
grow and gain memories and knowledge, they *gradually* become conscious.
This is one reason ethicist Peter Singer ascribes a lower intrinic
person-ness to infants and the mentally retarded as compared to competant
adults.

Jonathan Colvin
Received on Thu Jun 30 2005 - 22:09:37 PDT