I find it odd that many people’s ideas about other minds don’t involve, or even contradict, the existence of some non-arbitrary function that maps a (finite) number of discrete fundamental physical entities (assuming physics is discrete) in a system to a corresponding number of minds (or some potentially quantifiable property of minds) in that same system.
I have intuitions (which could be incorrect) that “physics is all there is” and that “minds are ultimately physical,” and it feels possible, in principle, to unify them somehow and relate “the amount of stuff” in both the physical and mental domains through such a function.
To me, this solution (“count all subsets of all elements within systems”) proposed by Brian Tomasik appears to be among plausible non-arbitrary options, and it could also be especially ethically relevant. Solutions such as these that suggest the existence of a very large number of minds imply moral wagers, e.g. to minimize possible suffering in the kinds of minds that are implied to be most numerous (in this case, those that comprise ~half of everything in the universe), which might make them worth investigating further.
Even if physics is continuous rather than discrete, it still seems possible that there could be a mapping from continuous physics to discrete minds. (disclaimer: I don’t know much physics, and I haven’t thought much about how it relates to the philosophy of mind.)
This is all speculative and counterintuitive. On the other hand, common-sense intuitions developed through evolution might not accurately represent the first-person experiences, or lack thereof, of other systems. They seem to have instead evolved because they helped model complicated systems relevant to fitness by picturing them as similar to one’s own mind. Common-sense intuitions aren’t necessarily reliable, and counterintuitive conclusions could potentially be true.
I find it odd that many people’s ideas about other minds don’t involve, or even contradict, the existence of some non-arbitrary function that maps a (finite) number of discrete fundamental physical entities (assuming physics is discrete) in a system to a corresponding number of minds (or some potentially quantifiable property of minds) in that same system.
I have intuitions (which could be incorrect) that “physics is all there is” and that “minds are ultimately physical,” and it feels possible, in principle, to unify them somehow and relate “the amount of stuff” in both the physical and mental domains through such a function.
To me, this solution (“count all subsets of all elements within systems”) proposed by Brian Tomasik appears to be among plausible non-arbitrary options, and it could also be especially ethically relevant. Solutions such as these that suggest the existence of a very large number of minds imply moral wagers, e.g. to minimize possible suffering in the kinds of minds that are implied to be most numerous (in this case, those that comprise ~half of everything in the universe), which might make them worth investigating further.
Even if physics is continuous rather than discrete, it still seems possible that there could be a mapping from continuous physics to discrete minds. (disclaimer: I don’t know much physics, and I haven’t thought much about how it relates to the philosophy of mind.)
This is all speculative and counterintuitive. On the other hand, common-sense intuitions developed through evolution might not accurately represent the first-person experiences, or lack thereof, of other systems. They seem to have instead evolved because they helped model complicated systems relevant to fitness by picturing them as similar to one’s own mind. Common-sense intuitions aren’t necessarily reliable, and counterintuitive conclusions could potentially be true.