If there’s any basis whatsoever to this notion of “continuity of consciousness”—I haven’t quite given up on it yet, because I don’t have anything better to cling to—then I would guess that this is how it works.
Why “cling to”? It all adds up to normality, right? What you are saying sounds like someone resisting the “winds of evidence” (in this case added complexity, I am guessing).
I tried to come up with ways to explain my observations of consciousness, but they all seem incomplete too, so far. But I don’t see how that impacts your argument here. I’m not saying “stop asking”. I just don’t see the reason to “cling” to this “notion of continuity”.
And if you think there is a reason, and I don’t see it, I am somewhat worried.
My response is to say that sometimes it doesn’t all add up to normality. Sometimes you learn something which renders your previous way of living obsolete.
It’s similar to the idea of thinking of yourself as having free will even if it isn’t the case: It can be comforting to think of yourself as having continuity of consciousness even if it isn’t the case.
Wei Dai posts here (https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/uXxoLPKAdunq6Lm3s/beware-selective-nihilism) suggesting that we “keep all of our (potential/apparent) values intact until we have a better handle on how we’re supposed to deal with ontological crises in general”. So basically, favor the status quo until you develop an alternative and understand its implications.
Why “cling to”? It all adds up to normality, right? What you are saying sounds like someone resisting the “winds of evidence” (in this case added complexity, I am guessing).
I tried to come up with ways to explain my observations of consciousness, but they all seem incomplete too, so far. But I don’t see how that impacts your argument here. I’m not saying “stop asking”. I just don’t see the reason to “cling” to this “notion of continuity”.
And if you think there is a reason, and I don’t see it, I am somewhat worried.
Best regards
My response is to say that sometimes it doesn’t all add up to normality. Sometimes you learn something which renders your previous way of living obsolete.
It’s similar to the idea of thinking of yourself as having free will even if it isn’t the case: It can be comforting to think of yourself as having continuity of consciousness even if it isn’t the case.
Wei Dai posts here (https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/uXxoLPKAdunq6Lm3s/beware-selective-nihilism) suggesting that we “keep all of our (potential/apparent) values intact until we have a better handle on how we’re supposed to deal with ontological crises in general”. So basically, favor the status quo until you develop an alternative and understand its implications.
What do you think?