Dear ToK List,

 

  As I mentioned a little while back, I am going to start a discussion on John Horgan’s on line book, Mind-Body Problems. I have talked to several list members who have agreed to read along, and so I hope it will make for some good discussion. The plan for the book is that we will read a chapter each week. As such, each Monday, I will post a summary of the chapter and will include an attachment that has a “follow along” commentary. One of the nice things about the book is that I can paste it into a word document and then offer commentary. I will post my summary and thoughts of the Introduction: The Weirdness on Monday.

 

  Why might this be something worth your time? I think confusion about the mind body problem(s) is one of the key challenges in developing a coherent framework for knowledge. Thus, it is of crucial concern to the general focus of this Society.

 

  I think Horgan’s book is a useful text for several reasons (which I shared with Waldemar on this list a few days back). One is convenience; it is free to all. But I see real substantive advantages to engage in a close, shared reading of this book. The issues that Horgan raises are very much at the heart of why psychology is a very different kind of knowledge system than physics, chemistry, or biology. Generally speaking, physicists, chemists, and biologists have relatively coherent frames for talking about these subject matters. They have a shared body of knowledge (i.e., quantum mechanics, natural selection), and there is clarity about what they are about (particles, molecules cells, etc). As I (and many others) have noted, this level of consensus breaks when we get to psychology. Put simply, psychologists cannot agree on our subject matter (mind versus behavior, animal versus human, etc). I believe that that reason why is that we have failed to develop a metaphysical system that is up to the task. My claim is that the gap is filled by the ToK System, which offers a novel way to understand behavior, mind, and consciousness, a way that gets the metaphysical dynamics correct and sets the stage for a more coherent understanding.  

 

  Although much of my work has been focused on the problem of psychology, there is another side of this coin, which is the mind-body problem from the vantage point of philosophy or everyday common sense or from other disciplines. And it is here that Horgan’s book fits in nicely for us. By following Horgan’s book, we can journey together into the various facets of the mind-body problems, and we can see where we agree and disagree. And it will provide a new opportunity to test out the ToK/UTUA system. If it is an effective language game, we should be able to use it and see where Horgan is confused and how to achieve a better understanding.

 

  As such, I hope you will consider reading along and joining in on the exchanges that follow.

 

Best,

Gregg