Charles Brown wrote:
How about biotech computers ?
i wondered about that too. but a lot of the work in this area is stuff implanted into humans, so the question of "does it think?" doesnt have the same impact.
and in areas where micro-controllers are being wedded to biological tissues/sensors, the causal connection dicussed by Searle is a little different it seems to me. in the case of brains, we have co-evolution of nervous system and body (obviously). in the case of embedded systems, the only way currently for the programs and controllers to adapt is via someone retooling the controllers and code.
people HAVE studied adaptive coding techniques, but i havent seen then used in this type of application yet. could you have adaptive code, adaptive micro-controller, and body parts evolving over time in such a way that you could remove "brain" from the mix and say it thinks? but this line of thinking seems to me to support Searle's thesis posted earlier.
les schaffer
