An Illustrated Novel
ALIBRAM Select Library
Stuff about:
"thought is the face that we put on the meaning that we feel" John O'Donohue
Consciousness, Selfs, Souls Personhood, Thoughts, Dogs, and Octopuses
The closer you look, the more the materialist position in physics appears to rest on shaky metaphysical ground
Consciousness is the greatest mystery in science. Don’t believe the hype: the Hard Problem is here to stay
It’s tempting to think science gives a God’s-eye view of reality. But we forget the place of human experience at our peril
Phenomenal consciousness is a fiction written by our brains to help us track the impact that the world makes on us
Hugh Everett blew up quantum mechanics with his Many-Worlds theory in the 1950s. Physics is only just catching up
Does the mother contain the foetus or is it a part of her? On the metaphysics of pregnancy, and its ethical implications
Does the mother contain the foetus or is it a part of her? On the metaphysics of pregnancy, and its ethical implications
Does the mother contain the foetus or is it a part of her? On the metaphysics of pregnancy, and its ethical implications
THE ELEPHANT WHO COULD BE A PERSON
The most important animal-rights case of the 21st century revolves around an unlikely subject.
"There are only Seven Great Dogs"
(Mind Matters)
And then for something incompletely different
DAY: July 29, 2000: EXTERIOR:
A Toyota is driving north through woods on a New Hampshire country road.
INSIDE we see GG (who just turned 18 today) in the passenger seat. The hair on her shaved head is starting to grow out and cannot conceal the exterior workings of her cochlear implant. SBO (20) is driving with all the blond and blue eyed assurance of lots of money.
GG
Go ahead. Go head. Now, ask me about “matter.”
SBO
Fine, G. Ok, What’s “matter”?
GG
Never mind.
(Horshack laugh)
SBO
That would be almost funny even if I hadn’t heard it before, but I wanna know what YOU think. Really.
GG
Oh, now, now, noun. Let’s not get into “really” unless it’s the subjective or objective case, that's bedeviling you.
SBO
C’mon! You know what I mean. …Can you say it? You can even give me the long version. I won’t rush you.
GG
I’m working on the shot shot shotish version possible, but it has to be a dialog,… except not too Platonic...
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More on Animal Minds and Cognition
Martha Nussbaum: What We Owe Our Fellow Animals
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Mama’s Last Hug: Animal Emotions and What They Tell Us About Ourselves
by Frans de Waal
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Dolphin Communication and Cognition: Past, Present, and Future
edited by Denise L. Herzing and Christine M. Johnson
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Deep Thinkers: Inside the Minds of Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises
edited by Janet Mann
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Becoming Wild: How Animal Cultures Raise Families, Create Beauty, and Achieve Peace
by Carl Safina
The Cultural Lives of Whales and Dolphins
by Hal Whitehead and Luke Rendell
Freud’s superego was one way to integrate the influence of others (punitive parent or society) into the mind of an individual. Jung’s collective unconsciousness was another. Here are two other approaches with different takes on society and culture
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The Dispersed Self?
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Three Filters of Consciousness
An attempt to “resolve the mind-body problem” that synthesize Freud and Rogers with three levels of mind interacting with the physical environment and society. (A little jargon heavy)
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