Must you be aware of your existance to want? Does awareness take mental capacity?
Awareness and Mental Capacity
- Thread starter Empty Dragon
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All living things "want". Even a bacteria "wants". It wants to be same, fat, and fruitful.
People however can want something but not know what that thing is. We can have all physical needs satisfied and any mental ones we ask for and still "want".
People however can want something but not know what that thing is. We can have all physical needs satisfied and any mental ones we ask for and still "want".
I should have used a different word then want. I would like too replace that with desire. Does bacteria truley want or desire? Is it all simply a mechanical reaction. Is there any really want or just. 101101010010001001100010010010010010101010101 Some basic code? Can bacteria become aware of its own existance?
What brings about that want? Does it require a certain brain capasity or is it related too a "soul" of some sort. I guess I am asking one of the oldest questions but what is awareness.
IMO, the want arises from biological needs.
We love? Because we want to satisfy our sexual urges and fulfil our natural call to propagation.
We hate? Because it threatens our selves. We build a mental barrier to prevent the hurt.
We think? Because we are insecure. We want to rationalize things, because each one of us is alone in his/her own mind, and by thinking, maybe we can console our natural innate fears.
Maybe you need just enough to make the vital neuron pathways, build up the different parts of a brain that responds to external stimuli (pain, etc), and you're on your way! But having a bigger brain doesn't mean you'll have more ideas or thoughts.
For example, a whale brain weighs 20 pounds. A human brain's a bit under three pounds.
"One theory looks at the brain mass/body mass ratio. The brain does more than think; it is responsible for the proper functioning of the entire body. The brain controls breathing, body temperature, heart beat, walking, blinking, all those aspects ofstaying alive that don't need conscious control. In general, the housekeeping of the body. The brain/body ratio theory basically says that the lower the ratio of brain mass to body mass, the more of the brain that must be devoted to housekeeping, although there is a certain minimum brain mass required for even simple housekeeping (for example, the African pygmy shrew has a brain/body ratio approximately equal to human beings (1:.02); few would ascribe to it equal intelligence). It would seem that any brain left over after housekeeping chores have been taken care of could be devoted to other things. Like thinking.
"Of all the animals on Earth at present, the animal with the greatest brain/body mass ratio is the human being. The average human (150 pound body, 3 pound brain) has a ratio of approximately 1:.02 (for each pound of body mass there is .02 pounds of brain mass). The average dolphin has a ratio of about 1:.00825 (the blue whale mentioned above has a ratio of about 1:.000165). The two highest ratios in the animal kingdom are the human and the dolphin (by comparison, the wolf, a very intelligent canine, has a ratio of about 1:.00156).
"Let us assume that the wolf requires its entire brain for housekeeping (a totally unfounded and, to me, absurd assumption). If this is the case, then the human brain has left over, after housekeeping, nearly 13 times thebrain mass the wolf has that can be devoted to thinking.
"Let's try an animal further down on the scale in terms of both brain/body ratio and perception of ability to think. Making the same comparison as human and wolf between a human and an alligator (ratio approximately 1:.000072), an animal not usually considered extremely bright, then the human has 278 times the brain mass that can be devoted to thinking. With that much capacity left over after housekeeping the human brain can devote itself to other pursuits. Those other pursuits are called thinking.
"To carry out the housekeeping functions of the brain, it must have input from the world outside the body it is keeping. It must know about cold or heat, it must know about light or darkness, it must know about hunger, thirst, or satiety. The brain must adjust the body to fit the conditions. For example, if the air temperature drops, the body converts more fat to energy to maintain body temperature. If the body is exerting itself, it needs more oxygen to keep the muscles functioning; the lungs automatically begin working faster and inhaling deeper to increase the amount of oxygen and the heart speeds up to deliver more fresh blood and thus more oxygen to the muscles. To stand on two legs requires balance which requires constant small adjustments of muscle tension and body position. All of the above is accomplished without conscious control. You do not have to think about speeding up your heart or adjusting each individual muscle to avoid falling over. These are housekeeping functions and you can ignore them. However, as shown above, housekeeping is not the only thing the human brain is capable of or does.
"To conceive, imagine, ideate, to think, also requires input from the world around the brain. Without that input, there is nothing about which to think."
http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~taflinge/mindwork/mawint1.html
We love? Because we want to satisfy our sexual urges and fulfil our natural call to propagation.
We hate? Because it threatens our selves. We build a mental barrier to prevent the hurt.
We think? Because we are insecure. We want to rationalize things, because each one of us is alone in his/her own mind, and by thinking, maybe we can console our natural innate fears.
Well, having a brain is good.
Maybe you need just enough to make the vital neuron pathways, build up the different parts of a brain that responds to external stimuli (pain, etc), and you're on your way! But having a bigger brain doesn't mean you'll have more ideas or thoughts.For example, a whale brain weighs 20 pounds. A human brain's a bit under three pounds.
"One theory looks at the brain mass/body mass ratio. The brain does more than think; it is responsible for the proper functioning of the entire body. The brain controls breathing, body temperature, heart beat, walking, blinking, all those aspects ofstaying alive that don't need conscious control. In general, the housekeeping of the body. The brain/body ratio theory basically says that the lower the ratio of brain mass to body mass, the more of the brain that must be devoted to housekeeping, although there is a certain minimum brain mass required for even simple housekeeping (for example, the African pygmy shrew has a brain/body ratio approximately equal to human beings (1:.02); few would ascribe to it equal intelligence). It would seem that any brain left over after housekeeping chores have been taken care of could be devoted to other things. Like thinking.
"Of all the animals on Earth at present, the animal with the greatest brain/body mass ratio is the human being. The average human (150 pound body, 3 pound brain) has a ratio of approximately 1:.02 (for each pound of body mass there is .02 pounds of brain mass). The average dolphin has a ratio of about 1:.00825 (the blue whale mentioned above has a ratio of about 1:.000165). The two highest ratios in the animal kingdom are the human and the dolphin (by comparison, the wolf, a very intelligent canine, has a ratio of about 1:.00156).
"Let us assume that the wolf requires its entire brain for housekeeping (a totally unfounded and, to me, absurd assumption). If this is the case, then the human brain has left over, after housekeeping, nearly 13 times thebrain mass the wolf has that can be devoted to thinking.
"Let's try an animal further down on the scale in terms of both brain/body ratio and perception of ability to think. Making the same comparison as human and wolf between a human and an alligator (ratio approximately 1:.000072), an animal not usually considered extremely bright, then the human has 278 times the brain mass that can be devoted to thinking. With that much capacity left over after housekeeping the human brain can devote itself to other pursuits. Those other pursuits are called thinking.
"To carry out the housekeeping functions of the brain, it must have input from the world outside the body it is keeping. It must know about cold or heat, it must know about light or darkness, it must know about hunger, thirst, or satiety. The brain must adjust the body to fit the conditions. For example, if the air temperature drops, the body converts more fat to energy to maintain body temperature. If the body is exerting itself, it needs more oxygen to keep the muscles functioning; the lungs automatically begin working faster and inhaling deeper to increase the amount of oxygen and the heart speeds up to deliver more fresh blood and thus more oxygen to the muscles. To stand on two legs requires balance which requires constant small adjustments of muscle tension and body position. All of the above is accomplished without conscious control. You do not have to think about speeding up your heart or adjusting each individual muscle to avoid falling over. These are housekeeping functions and you can ignore them. However, as shown above, housekeeping is not the only thing the human brain is capable of or does.
"To conceive, imagine, ideate, to think, also requires input from the world around the brain. Without that input, there is nothing about which to think."
http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~taflinge/mindwork/mawint1.html
What sparks us, how are we alive?
Bacteria want to eat and divide just like we want to eat and have sex. Want was well used. Usually neither of us rationalizes our wants but they are still there none-the-less.
All that separates us from animals is a little bit of memory and the ability to rationalize things. At least one animal, Koko, can even do that
101100100111 Instinctual code. But humans can go against there instincts how does that work.
Does anyone know how natural energies that we are exposed to during our day affect us(Ei: sun, gravity, Planets, house hold appliances).
What about loving the taste of an orange or homosexuality?
Does anyone know how natural energies that we are exposed to during our day affect us(Ei: sun, gravity, Planets, house hold appliances).
What about loving the taste of an orange or homosexuality?
I believe we are alive because of a force in the universe, the "life-force" (that which makes things alive, mind you that is the full definition - note that I don't even have to fully define "alive" for the definition to maintain validity, it is general such that it describes a very generalized thing).
I don't believe at this point the question can be answered any more than "why does the universe exist?" actually, there are better theories about that. I would think you'd have to be able to answer the latter to be able to tackle the former. In other words "why does the universe exist" must precede "why does the life-force exist". Something like that.
Kinda like the Tao. Mind you they say that it cannot be conceived by intellect.
The "Tao" cannot be named. Why? Because they say it is beyond intellectual comprehension. Because no word can describe the Tao it can only be abtained. I have heard the saying "With out a body the Tao cannot be obtained but with a body the truth can never be realized." In a nut shell the only way to realize the "truth" is through the spirit.
hmm.. that's complicated. I both agree and disagree. I think truth is available to intellect, but at the cost of never knowing for sure it is truth. The only way truth can be felt for sure is through emotion (or spirit), but at the cost of giving up one's search for truth. This is in keeping with the paradox of consciousness.
I don't think you have to give up the intellect or the search for truth just taht you need both tools.
Thought this might be of interest ...
From the Tao Te Ching
Feng-English translation
The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations.
These two spring from the same source but differ in name;
this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.
From the Tao Te Ching
Feng-English translation
The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations.
These two spring from the same source but differ in name;
this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.