The Mind and the Machine: What It Means to Be Human and Why It MattersAre humans just complex biochemical machines, mere physical parts of a causally closed materialist universe? Are we approaching the so-called "Singularity" when human consciousness can (and will) be downloaded into computers? Or is there more to the human person--something that might be known as soul or spirit? As this book makes clear, the answers to these questions have profound implications to topics such as heroism, creativity, ecology, and the possibility of reason and science. In exploring this important topic, Dickerson engages the ideas of some well-known twentieth- and twenty-first-century espousers of physicalism, including philosopher Daniel Dennett (Consciousness Explained), biologist Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), futurist-engineer Raymond Kurzweil (The Age of Spiritual Machines), psychologist B. F. Skinner (Beyond Freedom and Dignity), and mathematician-philosopher Bertrand Russell (Why I Am Not a Christian). Through a careful reading of their works, Dickerson not only provides a five-fold critique of physicalism, but also offers a Christian alternative in the form of "integrative dualism," which affirms the existence of both a physical and spiritual reality without diminishing the goodness or importance of either, and acknowledges that humans are spiritual as well as bodily persons. |
Contents
Physicalism Creativity | |
Naturalism and Nature | |
Reason Science and the Mind | |
The Spiritual Human | |
Body Spirit and the Value | |
A Biblical Defense of Reason | |
The Integrated Person | |
Works Cited | |
Other editions - View all
Mind and the Machine, The: What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters Matthew Dickerson Limited preview - 2011 |
The Mind and the Machine: What It Means to Be Human and Why It Matters Matthew Dickerson Limited preview - 2017 |
Common terms and phrases
accept affirms answer argue argument assumption of physicalism Aulë B. F. Skinner behavior believe biochemical computers bodily body brain C. S. Lewis causal closure causes chapter Christian claims complex conclusion cosmos created creation creativity and heroism creatures Daniel Dennett Dawkins Dennett deny determined ecological evidence example existence explain explore faith form of dualism God Delusion hröa human consciousness human creativity human person Ibid idea illusion implications important inductive reasoning integrative dualism J. R. R. Tolkien Jesus Judeo-Christian knowledge Kurzweil laws of physics Leaf by Niggle live means Middle-earth miracles miraculous signs moral naturalist normative noted observation particles philosophical physicalist possible presuppositions proposition purpose quantum question random Raymond Kurzweil reason and science scientific scientists sense simply soul Spiritual Machines spiritual reality strict naturalism suggests supernatural Taliaferro telos theism theistic theists things thought experiment true trustworthy truth understanding unpredictable valid word world view writes