Re: What exactly is "panpsychism"?

From: Metaqualia (metaqualia@mynichi.com)
Date: Sun Jan 11 2004 - 23:30:07 MST


>Now, for your Rock + Tree system; the bandwidth between the two systems
consists

Good idea about the bandwidth. But.

The rock + tree system has a higher bandwidth than you may think.

1. informational complexity as a system

The position of the rock relative to each one of the atoms in the tree keeps
changing because of wind bending tree branches, leaves moving around, the
rock being kicked around, etc.
The tree grows, too. The rock's electron clouds do not remain static. There
are thermal vibrations involved. It's not a null informational system,
depending on what you consider as being information.

2. communication

the way air bounces against the tree depends on turbulence created by the
rock. These are very subtle effects, but with infinite technology you could
analyze how the rock and the tree are in contact through air molecules, and
photons going back and forth, etc.

Just count how many air molecules and photons there are and how fast they
come; a rock/tree system probably has more bandwidth overall than your
provider's high speed backbone connection.

>A Zen Master in meditation ceases all thought, but presumably there is
still some
>quale there, a "quale of nothingness," so I don't believe it's wholly
unjustified to say
>that a rock could have a quale.

Easy on that... nobody ceases all thought unless a brain scan tell me so :)

mq



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