80k After Hours Highlights: #190 – Eric Schwitzgebel on whether the US is conscious
Jun 21, 2024
Philosopher Eric Schwitzgebel discusses nested consciousness in the US, challenging intuitive thinking and exploring dream experiences. The conversation delves into emergent consciousness in ants, reliability of human intuition, and the moral significance of dreams, questioning the boundaries between wakefulness and dreams.
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Nested Consciousness
- Eric Schwitzgebel discusses the possibility of nested consciousness, where one conscious entity is composed of other conscious entities.
- He challenges the intuition that this isn't possible, using the example of a conscious being made of bugs.
Ontarian Edheads
- Schwitzgebel introduces the "Ontarian Edheads," fictional mammoth-like creatures with brains made of conscious bugs.
- This example challenges the idea that a conscious entity cannot have conscious parts.
Unreliable Intuitions
- Luisa Rodriguez asks why human intuitions about complex philosophical concepts are often unreliable.
- Schwitzgebel explains that our intuitions evolved for practical matters, not abstract thought.