Thread

1. wolframhempel · 1789739488 · focus · HN ↗

   I'm perfectly happy to believe that the United States has an awareness of itself in the abstract sense that its a complex system with emerging behaviors that are feedbackloops of itself. I'm also convinced that all mammals and most sea and air creatures have consciousness in this as well as the more general sense.

   To me, the fact that an awareness of one self exists isn't particularly stunning - what's stunning to me is that we believe it is something incredibly special and we are the only ones endowed with it.

   I think this assumption comes from the same human self confidence that decided it was the only thing "created in gods image" in the universe and so on...

   1. somenameforme · 1789742453 · focus · HN ↗

      I think it's more that humans have put a man on the Moon, whereas we're highly impressed with other animals when they are capable of doing something productive with a twig or make gestures or noises that can be reasonably interpreted as some form of simple communication.

      The point of that is that humans obviously are exceptionally special relative to absolutely everything else we know in this universe. And while consciousness and intelligence are two different concepts, it's not unreasonable to think things which are 'natural' for a human are anything but for other species.

      1. readthenotes1 · 1789747928 · focus · HN ↗

         Did humans put a man on the moon using tools or did the USA put a man on the moon using humans?

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