So far I have argued that materialism /physicalism is nowadays the most reasonable ontological explanation of our reality. This brings us to the epistemological question: how do we know
The materialist has always grounded knowledge in the empirical study of reality. However, hand in hand with developments in science, the scientific method has undergone profound refinement and elucidation.
In particular, higher and higher critical standards have been set for the acceptance of theories, and many theories are only ever held with some degree of tentativeness.
The connection between the scientific method and materialism and physicalism is complex. On the one hand, much about science as it is now done,
especially in biology and chemistry, presupposes physicalism and the origins of modern science lie in the repudiation of immaterial essences and forms.
On the other hand, as I said in the previous lecture, physicalism is a falsifiable theory, and in virtue of this falsifiability physicalism claims legitimacy as a theory about reality.
In principle, science could disprove physicalism. However, the physicalist outlook is so deeply embedded in the practice of theoretical physics,
that if the point were reached where it was felt necessary to postulate the existence of a mental or spiritual entity to provide an explanation of some phenomenon,
science would have reached a stage in its development so revolutionary, demanding such a profound change in perspective,
that everything would be up for question, including the fundamental epistemological outlook established in the seventeenth century.
This leaves us with the observation that there is probably a fundamental division amongst people with regard to the question of whether or not reality has a spiritual dimension.
A vast majority of people all over the world subscribe to the belief in some god or other spiritual entity, that is part of and can influence their existence and well-being.
The physicalist has only the physical world and as a tool to master it his rationality, which offers him the narrative of his human condition.
All other narratives about the human condition are products of the human mind. No matter, no mind, no mind, no narrative......
So, our most important tool to preserve our survival is our rationality. In the final lecture of this project, I'll elaborate on the concept of rationality.
Again, a word easily used, but loaded with questions.....
Thank you for your attention again....
Feel free to throw in your remarks and questions now.......
Main Sources:
MacMillan The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd edition
TABLE OF CONTENT -----------------------------------------------------------------
1 - 100 Philosophers 9 May 2009 Start of
2 - 25+ Women Philosophers 10 May 2009 this blog
3 - 25 Adventures in Thinking 10 May 2009
4 - Modern Theories of Ethics 29 Oct 2009
5 - The Ideal State 24 Febr 2010 / 234
6 - The Mystery of the Brain 3 Sept 2010 / 266
7 - The Utopia of the Free Market 16 Febr 2012 / 383
8. - The Aftermath of Neo-liberalism 5 Sept 2012 / 413
9. - The Art Not to Be an Egoist 6 Nov 2012 / 426
10 - Non-Western Philosophy 29 May 2013 / 477
11 - Why Science is Right 2 Sept 2014 / 534
12 - A Philosopher looks at Atheism 1 Jan 2015 / 557
13 - EVIL, a philosophical investigation 17 Apr 2015 / 580
14 - Existentialism and Free Will 2 Sept 2015 / 586
15 - Spinoza 2 Sept 2016 / 615
16 - The Meaning of Life 13 Febr 2017 / 637
17 - In Search of my Self 6 Sept 2017 / 670
18 - The 20th Century Revisited 3 Apr 2018 / 706
19 - The Pessimist 11 Jan 2020 / 819
20 - The Optimist 9 Febr 2020 / 824
21 - Awakening from a Neoliberal Dream 8 Oct 2020 / 872
22 - A World Full of Patterns 1 Apr 2021 / 912
23 - The Concept of Freedom 8 Jan 2022 / 965
24 - Materialism 7 Sept 2022 / 1011
The Discussion
[13:28] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): Thank you Herman
[13:29] Lukkie Sands: So it is just us, human beings and our rationality on this planet?
[13:29] herman Bergson: I'd say, yes indeed Lukkie....just us and our brain...
[13:30] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): I think as far as we know now Lukkie
[13:30] Max Chatnoir: I have a sort of hypothesis about humans and religion. We are primates, closely related to chimpanzees. Chimpanzees have dominant males and the dominant males have buddies who share somewhat in that dominance. I think of the idea of God as an ultimate dominant male to which other powerful males might take importance from claiming to represent him.
[13:30] Lukkie Sands: You think of extraterrestrials Beertje?
[13:31] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): we never know in the future we will think different
[13:31] Max Chatnoir: Yes, other intelligent life forms would be very interesting.
[13:31] herman Bergson: That is a classic point of view, Max
[13:32] herman Bergson: In the Middle Ages and later kings derived their power from God.
[13:32] herman Bergson: What kind of difference do you expect Beertje?
[13:32] Lukkie Sands: Yes, what difference?
[13:32] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): that lies in the future I suppose
[13:33] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): there is so much that we don't know about
[13:34] herman Bergson: True, but yet there is also a lot we know about and from that we can extrapolate a lot with respect to what a future could bring
[13:35] herman Bergson: So your remark is only suggestive and speculative....
[13:35] Max Chatnoir: There are some intelligent life forms here on earth that we don't really understand very well and can't even communicate well enough with to ask about how they think about things.
[13:35] Max Chatnoir: Dolphins. Octopuses.
[13:35] herman Bergson: YEs Max...
[13:36] herman Bergson: It is not intelligent vs not-intelligent....
[13:36] herman Bergson: there is a huge grey area between these two extremes
[13:37] herman Bergson: You could say that we were in that grey area for centuries....and then something happened in our genes....a mutation?...Who knows
[13:37] herman Bergson: and the spark of consciousness was lightened
[13:38] herman Bergson: And from an evolutionary point of view in a way it was a disaster
[13:39] Max Chatnoir: Did we just become conscious as humans or did we start to develop means of communication that weren't just language, like writing.
[13:39] bergfrau Apfelbaum: maybe the other life form is even more intelligent and knows that we are not "allowed" to mate, otherwise the universe will collapse in on itself. wherever ?
[13:39] herman Bergson: because, homo habilis, in the middle of the foodchain became homo sapiens and moved up to the first place....
[13:40] herman Bergson: How consciousness developed we only can deduce/guess from archeological findings
[13:41] herman Bergson: beginning with the use of tools, then the discovery and control of fire and so on
[13:41] Max Chatnoir: Homo sapiens almost didn't make it. We went through some kind of severe population reduction about 900K years ago.
[13:42] herman Bergson: But he made it yet...
[13:42] Max Chatnoir: Lucky us!
[13:43] Max Chatnoir: Or maybe one of the other hominid branches would have become dominant.
[13:43] herman Bergson: Bergie, other lifeforms have no 'knowledge', they don't know...they respond on instinct to their environment in general
[13:44] herman Bergson: There are many books about how the Neanderthals disappeared from this planet
[13:44] bergfrau Apfelbaum: how do you know?
[13:45] herman Bergson: Well...we'll end up in a debate about the definition of knowledge, I fear, Bergie....
[13:46] bergfrau Apfelbaum: ok :-)
[13:46] Max Chatnoir: Bergie, what did you mean "not allowed to mate." Do you mean not allowed to mate with other life forms, or not allowed to mate with our own life form?
[13:46] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): I think those books are only suggestive and speculative..., no one really knows for sure
[13:47] herman Bergson: And who is it that allows of forbids it?
[13:47] herman Bergson: true Beertje.....extrapolations of what we know...
[13:48] herman Bergson: But still guess work
[13:48] bergfrau Apfelbaum: with the other form of life, i meant . but it was just something like thinking out loud
[13:50] bergfrau Apfelbaum: cheers :-) tea with rum
[13:50] Max Chatnoir: We carry some of the Neanderthal genes. But they were also from here.
[13:50] herman Bergson: Indeed Max
[13:50] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): some have the brains of a Neandertal
[13:51] herman Bergson: Well...final conclusion for me is that all we have is ourselves and our rationality. With that we have make our future.
[13:51] herman Bergson: No one else will help us with that.
[13:51] Max Chatnoir: They had big brains. If they had survived they might be pretty interesting.
[13:51] Max Chatnoir: Neanderthals.
[13:51] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): ツ
[13:53] herman Bergson: Interesting indeed, but if you suggest that there is a relation between the size of the brain and how smart the organism is....that is questionable
[13:54] Max Chatnoir: But it's not impossible that a sufficiently aggressive species, which we certainly are, could have killed of a more intelligent species.
[13:55] Max Chatnoir: But I don't know how Neanderthal intelligence could have been measured.
[13:55] herman Bergson: True, but based on what I have read and heard this was not the case in relation to the Neanderthals
[13:56] herman Bergson: but I forgot all those details about this issue :-)
[13:56] herman Bergson: If it were true homo sapiens had a good start beginning with a genocide.....
[13:57] Max Chatnoir: But none of what we have read was written by Neanderthals. History is written by the winners, right?
[13:57] herman Bergson: YEs but that is not what I refer to. I refer to archeological findings and conclusions.
[13:57] Lecturehall: 2023-09-28 [22:57] b3n4dryl Resident
[13:58] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): maybe the Neanderthals had a better memory than we have..we often have no active memory
[13:58] herman Bergson: I agree Beertje: I have no active memory of Neanderthals :-))
[13:59] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): hello b3n4dryl
[13:59] Max Chatnoir: Maybe they had such good memories that they didn't have to write stuff down. :-)
[13:59] b3n4dryl: good afternoon yall :)
[13:59] herman Bergson: ohh there you are R2B2 :-))
[14:01] herman Bergson: Well, I guess : HORA EST :-))
[14:01] Max Chatnoir: Oh, my goodness. Time flies.
[14:01] herman Bergson: Next Tuesday our last lecture on this theme....then we'll figure out what Rationality means.
[14:02] herman Bergson: Indeed Max.
[14:02] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): happens in a good lecture
[14:03] herman Bergson: We didn't waste our time, indeed.
[14:03] herman Bergson: So...thank you all again...
[14:04] herman Bergson: Class dismissed....
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