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Article 2531 of comp.ai.philosophy:
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>From: santas@inf.ethz.ch (Filippos Santas)
Subject: Re: Ignore Searle and be happier
Message-ID: <1992Jan7.203119.6231@neptune.inf.ethz.ch>
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Organization: Dept. Informatik, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)
References: <1991Dec30.234440.1645@mp.cs.niu.edu> <1992Jan2.161407.20515@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com> <1992Jan2.175438.20066@mp.cs.niu.edu>
Date: Tue, 7 Jan 1992 20:31:19 GMT



In article <1992Jan2.175438.20066@mp.cs.niu.edu> rickert@mp.cs.niu.edu (Neil Rickert) writes:
>
> The natural forces could be considered a form of knowledge, just as could
>the fixed source program of a computer program.  But if so, it is a fixed
>knowledge with no learning. 

Who has this knowledge? The forces by themselves? The universe?
Or you who know these forces?

> The tree has a memory.  Its growth averaged over one growing season gives it
>the starting point for the next season's growth.  Using this it can generate
>most of the new spring leaves where they will probably have plenty of light
>in mid summer, instead of wastefully growing according to the light levels
>of early spring which where the new leaves would soon be starved for light by
>the growth of adjacent trees.

Suppose a man with closed eyes put in the middle of a playground
(but he does not know where he is). Then he start walking until
something stops his movement. Does he have memory of where he is in each
step of his march? What is his memory?

Can this man use his current position as a reference point for his next movement?

> Well the tree has stored up knowledge about its environment and about
>its optimal behavior.  I seriously doubt that it is a conscious being.

What is the knowledge that the tree has stored?
I think that the tree behaves in many cases like the man in the example above.
It receives some stimuli (temperature, light intensity etc) and it reacts
according to its current state. Note that this state is not 
memory (or knowledge) as the man in our example has no memory (or knowledge) of 
where he is.

> Perhaps you don't consider that knowledge.  But then what about the
>knowledge in a library?  Does it become non-knowledge when the last conscious
>being leaves for the evening, and then turn back into knowledge the next
>morning?  Or does the library possess its own consciousness?

This example is relevant to your example with the trees. The books are not
in a position to have memory but they can serve as memory for certain
humans. 

Philip Santas

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email: santas@inf.ethz.ch				 Philip Santas
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