Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!cca!milla
From: milla@cca.UUCP (Michael J. Massimilla)
Newsgroups: net.ai
Subject: Re: the Halting problem.
Message-ID: <5880@cca.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 12-Oct-83 14:43:39 EDT
Article-I.D.: cca.5880
Posted: Wed Oct 12 14:43:39 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 13-Oct-83 11:08:54 EDT
References: <5837@cca.UUCP> csd1.124
Lines: 17


Of course self-awareness is real.   The  point  is  that  self-awareness
comes  about  BECAUSE  of  the  illusion  of consciousness.  If you were
capable of only very primitive thought, you would  be  less  self-aware.
The  greater  your  capacity  for complex thought, the more you perceive
that your actions are the result of an active,  thinking  entity.   Man,
because  of  his  capacity  to form a model of the world in his mind, is
able to form a model of himself.  This all makes  sense  from  a  purely
physical  viewpoint;  there  is  no  need  for  a supernatural "soul" to
complement the brain.  Animals appear to have some  self-awareness;  the
quantity  depends  on  their intelligence.  Conceivably, a very advanced
computer system could have a high degree  of  self-awareness.   As  with
consciousness,  it is lack of information -- how the brain works, random
factors, etc. which makes self-awareness  seem  to  be  a  very  special
quality.  In fact, it is a very simple, unremarkable characteristic.

						M. Massimilla