Philosophy For Our Times

The mystery of emergence | Suchitra Sebastian, Philip Goff, Hilary Lawson

May 14, 2024

The podcast features Suchitra Sebastian, Philip Goff, and Hilary Lawson discussing the mysteries of emergence. They explore the concept's role in understanding consciousness, free will, and life. Critics debate if emergence truly explains phenomena or if it's a misleading illusion. The discussion delves into quantum physics, superconductivity, differentiation, consciousness, and panpsychism, challenging traditional views and proposing new perspectives on reality.

49:11

Episode guests

Hilary Lawson

Philip Goff

Suchitra Sebastian

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Emergence guides scientific exploration towards discovering new forms of matter beyond basic components.

Understanding consciousness involves distinguishing strong and weak emergence to explain the relationship with physical activity.

Deep dives

Emergence in Scientific Exploration

Science is about encountering novel phenomena through experiments. Emergence is discussed as a way to encounter new forms of matter that cannot be explained solely by starting with basic components and putting them together. In science, emergence directs researchers on where to look and how to explore to discover new emergent matter.

Introduction

2min

Exploring Emergence in Quantum Physics

6min

Exploring Consciousness and Emergence

15min

Exploring Differentiation and Emergence in Entities

1min

Exploring Emergence, Consciousness, and Panpsychism

21min

Exploring Philosophical Frameworks and Vocabularies in Understanding Phenomena

4min

Is complexity a cop-out?

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From consciousness to free will, and even life itself, it has become commonplace for philosophers and neuroscientists to explain some of the most puzzling phenomena in the universe as 'emergent'. Some even make the claim that nothing in science makes sense without emergence, the idea that the characteristics and behaviour of the whole is different from, and in addition to, its parts. But critics argue there is a danger emergence gives the impression of understanding when in reality it explains nothing.

Can we explain emergence and account for an overall property occurs when it is not present in the elemental parts? Might a new science of emergence enable breakthroughs in our understanding of life, consciousness and physical properties like superconductivity? Or is emergence a rhetorical device used to give the misleading impression that materialism is capable of explaining the deepest mysteries?

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