The Thomistic Institute
The Compatibility of Neuroscience and the Soul | Prof. James Madden
Apr 25, 2024
Prof. James Madden discusses the soul's relation to neuroscience, questioning its relevance if neuroscience can explain consciousness. He uses analogies like touring a university and delves into category mistakes, forms, and logical reasoning. The conversation also covers ethics in life support, human cognitive abilities, and the potential existence of immortal souls in humans and animals.
01:04:10
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Quick takeaways
- The concept of substance dualism distinguishes the body's physical functions from the soul's mental processes.
- Aristotelian philosophy introduces substantial forms as unifying principles for living beings, transcending solely consciousness-based identity.
Deep dives
The Nature of the Soul and Substance Dualism
There is a distinction between popular imagination of the soul as a ghostly entity separate from the body and the philosophical view of the soul as a unifying principle of a substance. Substance dualism posits that the body and the soul are distinct entities with different tasks, where the body is responsible for physical functions, and the soul is responsible for mental processes. The popular dualism between the physical body and the immaterial soul poses a challenge when considering the advancements in neuroscience, where brain functions can be linked to conscious experiences, potentially undermining the traditional substance dualist perspective.
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