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From: eliot@tucson.princeton.edu (Eliot Handelman)
Subject: Re: Emotions in AI
Message-ID: <1994Nov15.020310.10899@Princeton.EDU>
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Date: Tue, 15 Nov 1994 02:03:10 GMT
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bkort@musenet.org (Barry Kort) wrote:
;
;In people, these states may manifest themselves as changes in body
;chemistry (especially neuropeptide levels), heart rate, breathing,
;muscle tension, restlessness, etc.  We can sense these somatic reactions
;and label them as Feelings, but what's important is the Abstract
;Cognitive Emotional State.

William James disagrees. "Without the bodily states following on the
perception, the latter would be purely cognitive in form,
pale, colorless, destitute of emotional warmth." (Principles, II, p. 450).
Cannon dissented: the matter as we know is still fundamental
to emotion theory. Or are you just saying this without meaning to
impinge on the truth of matter, whatever it is?

;Emotional States that we recognize in people: Curiosity and Fascination,
;Interest and Disinterest, Confusion and Confidence. 

I follow your argument, but don't you think that these states are
subtended by other, more primitive emotional operators? Or more
accurately, EMOTIONAL states? Because I don't think the states you
describe are emotional. They may be accompanied by emotion, but didn't
you want emotion to be used as a trigger? In that case, haven't 
you missed out on whatever it was you wanted to introduce?
