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Article 3615 of comp.ai.philosophy:
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!petersow
>From: petersow@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com (Wayne Peterson)
Newsgroups: comp.ai.philosophy
Subject: Re: Plato's Meno and Re: Thought as an evolutionary process
Message-ID: <1992Feb10.155824.12738@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com>
Date: 10 Feb 92 15:58:24 GMT
References: <1992Jan27.021252.1118@memstvx1.memst.edu> <3342@novavax.UUCP> <1992Feb9.215755.1849@vax.muskingum.edu>
Organization: Honeywell Air Transport Systems Division
Lines: 16

Ra_ashar states that from interpretting Platos Meno, every being
that is endowed with neurons has the potential to develop and strengten
optimal connection. Hence learning merely involves refining existing
connections.

"If all you have is a hammer then every thing looks like a nail."

Connectionist are preoccupied with the neural hammer.

Plato is stating that the mind (and soul) pre-exists the body (brain) and
we are merely engaged in remembering what we had once known. Neurons
would only be the minds link (ethernet perhaps) to the physical
body.  The are for communication with the world (including the body).

Still trying to remember,
Wayne Peterson


