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Single Idea 3002
[filed under theme 17. Mind and Body / E. Mind as Physical / 7. Anti-Physicalism / a. Physicalism critique
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Full Idea
Central state identity theorists had trouble providing for the nomological possibility of rational machines (and hence no space for a non-biological, e.g. computational, theory of intelligence).
Clarification
'Nomological' means concerned with rule-following
Gist of Idea
If mind is just physical, how can it follow the rules required for intelligent thought?
Source
Jerry A. Fodor (Psychosemantics [1987], p. 67)
Book Ref
Fodor,Jerry A.: 'Psychosemantics' [MIT 1993], p.67
A Reaction
I surmise that a more externalist account of the physical mind might do the trick, by explaining intelligence in terms of an evolved relationship between brain and environment.
The
27 ideas
from 'Psychosemantics'
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5498
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Mind is a set of hierarchical 'homunculi', which are made up in turn from subcomponents
[Fodor, by Lycan]
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7326
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Intentionality doesn't go deep enough to appear on the physicists' ultimate list of things
[Fodor]
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7014
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A particle and a coin heads-or-tails pick out to perfectly well-defined predicates and properties
[Fodor]
|
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15494
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We can't use propositions to explain intentional attitudes, because they would need explaining
[Fodor]
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2990
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Contrary to commonsense, most of what is in the mind seems to be unlearned
[Fodor]
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2991
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Hume's associationism offers no explanation at all of rational thought
[Fodor]
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2992
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We may be able to explain rationality mechanically
[Fodor]
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2993
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Any piece of software can always be hard-wired
[Fodor]
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2994
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In CRTT thought may be represented, content must be
[Fodor]
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2995
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Supervenience gives good support for mental causation
[Fodor]
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2996
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Mental states may have the same content but different extensions
[Fodor]
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2998
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Grice thinks meaning is inherited from the propositional attitudes which sentences express
[Fodor]
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2999
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Obsession with narrow content leads to various sorts of hopeless anti-realism
[Fodor]
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3000
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Meaning holism is a crazy doctrine
[Fodor]
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3002
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If mind is just physical, how can it follow the rules required for intelligent thought?
[Fodor]
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3001
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Behaviourism has no theory of mental causation
[Fodor]
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3003
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Very different mental states can share their contents, so content doesn't seem to be constructed from functional role
[Fodor]
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3004
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The meaning of a sentence derives from its use in expressing an attitude
[Fodor]
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3005
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'Jocasta' needs to be distinguished from 'Oedipus's mother' because they are connected by different properties
[Fodor]
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3006
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Whatever in the mind delivers falsehood is parasitic on what delivers truth
[Fodor]
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3007
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Many different verification procedures can reach 'star', but it only has one semantic value
[Fodor]
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3008
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Evolution suggests that innate knowledge of human psychology would be beneficial
[Fodor]
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3009
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Sticklebacks have an innate idea that red things are rivals
[Fodor]
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3010
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Belief and desire are structured states, which need mentalese
[Fodor]
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3011
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Causal powers must be a crucial feature of mental states
[Fodor]
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3012
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Do identical thoughts have identical causal roles?
[Fodor]
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2988
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Folk psychology is the only explanation of behaviour we have
[Fodor]
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