Much like “newcomb’s paradox”, p-zombies get brought up as an “argument”, and then somehow nobody notices that the actual argument is “what is the universe like”, not “what would happen in this hypothetical undefined-maybe-possible situation”. It’s fundamentally an empirical question, and trying to answer it with thought experiments and logic is kind of pointless.
On the contrary, it is reasonable for people to update in response to this argument, such as if they realise they hold views that are inconsistent. For example, if they identify as a materialist, but haven’t actually thought through what a the materialist view of consciousness would entail, they might discover that this is not something they actually endorse.
you’re right—in the case where it points out a logical contradiction, it can be cause for update. It doesn’t necessarily help in what direction to update (away from materialism or away from p-zombies being possible).
There is not only an issue of what the universe is like, but of how well we have explained it. Thought experiments can weigh against claims that something has been adequately explained.
Much like “newcomb’s paradox”, p-zombies get brought up as an “argument”, and then somehow nobody notices that the actual argument is “what is the universe like”, not “what would happen in this hypothetical undefined-maybe-possible situation”. It’s fundamentally an empirical question, and trying to answer it with thought experiments and logic is kind of pointless.
On the contrary, it is reasonable for people to update in response to this argument, such as if they realise they hold views that are inconsistent. For example, if they identify as a materialist, but haven’t actually thought through what a the materialist view of consciousness would entail, they might discover that this is not something they actually endorse.
you’re right—in the case where it points out a logical contradiction, it can be cause for update. It doesn’t necessarily help in what direction to update (away from materialism or away from p-zombies being possible).
There is not only an issue of what the universe is like, but of how well we have explained it. Thought experiments can weigh against claims that something has been adequately explained.
How does this apply here?