...how does one think? — Benj96
Am I thinking as long as my brain shows electrical waves on an EEG? — Benj96
Some animals think, to a limited extent. They too grapple a bit with the reality presented to them. Granted, it's not high level, but it's an activity that developed before we became sentient. — Bitter Crank
Processing information. — Harry Hindu
Processing information.
— Harry Hindu
... and knowing that you do. Otherwise a computer can think. — Olivier5
1. Random: No two thoughts are correlated in any way. One moment I'm thinking of bats and the next moment of the Hydrogen nucleus. — TheMadFool
Your definition just doesnt work. There only needs to be awareness of thinking to possess knowledge of thinking, not just thinking itself. For thinking, all you need is to process information for some purpose.It's all a matter of definition. You can chose whichever you'd like of course but for me your definition is too broad. Life too can be defined as some sort of information processing, as it's all coded in DNA. Is life the same concept as thinking? I don't think so. — Olivier5
Can you think without holding some information in memory over a period of time? — Harry Hindu
A lot of thinking goes on unconsciously. — Bitter Crank
What they mean is that they weren't thinking correctly, as in being logical. You can't help but think - I think therefore I am. Whether or not your thinking is consistent and coherent is something else.And yet, when people act mechanically and end up making a mistake they often say: “sorry, I wasn’t thinking”, as pointed by forgottenticket. — Olivier5
A spreadsheet isn't software. It is the product of software and hardware. Brains are mechanical, so I still don't see the distinction you're trying to make.But their software is also ‘mechanical’ in that it is totally deterministic and unable to reform itself. No spreadsheet ever told me: “I’m tired with mathematics, I want to do poetry instead!” — Olivier5
Self/meta-questioning (i.e. reflection) is thinking. — 180 Proof
"sleeping on a problem" — Bitter Crank
That's fine. But my point was that you are always thinking. You can never stop thinking. Even in clearing your mind, you are thinking about clearing your mind and focusing on that task. You are always thinking so when you are conscious, of course you are aware of the thinking because you are always doing it even when unconscious.What Descartes means when saying "I think therefore I am" is: I am conscious of my own thoughts, and thus I cannot doubt my own existence." A computer cannot reason as such because it is not aware of itself. — Olivier5
Well, then I would have to ask what you meant by "mechanical". I thought you mean materialistic and causal. We can't use our ignorance of how the brain works as evidence that brains can never be explained in causal terms. Computers are becoming less and less mechanical and more and more electronic. Hard drives are a great example of this in how going from the spinning disk IDE drives to the fully electronic solid state drives. Brains operate on electricity, as do computers. Throughout history, we've often tried to use mechanistic inventions as examples of how the mind works, but it wasn't until the computer came along that we truly have a good metaphor for how the mind works.As for the idea that brains are "mechanical" (as determined as clockwork), it is a bit counter-intuitive, and there is no evidence for it that I am aware of. — Olivier5
In common language: there’s always some mental activity happening.my point was that you are always thinking — Harry Hindu
In theory it can be done, but current ones can’t so by my definition they are not “thinking”. What I mean by aware is: I can hear myself thinking. I have some knowledge of what I think while I think it.A computer could be programmed to be aware of itself, just as you are. And to say that you are aware of yourself, what exactly do you mean? — Harry Hindu
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