I'd say inconsequential is your choice not to reveal certain information to us. But now we're straying from the topic. BACK ON TASK -Dramatic steering wheel turn-
The concept of a person is interesting. Something like 90% of your body cells are replaced every year. So you could say that we are a completely different person every year.
In a literal sense, yes, but consider this: A person can remain alive without their heart valves (replaced artificially), their bladder, their large intestine, their stomach, and their kidneys as well as a few more organs. This wouldn't make them any less of a person but it brings about an interesting topic in this thread: Human modifications. (Think Deus Ex) Would somebody who is mostly cybernetic be a person still, or would they be something else?
I'm pretty sure souls don't exist physically. If a person is kind and humane, and not cruel or heartless, you have what could be defined as a soul. In my opinion at least. That's what makes a person who he is.
well personally I don't believe that souls are real. I think a person is just a person. From Bieber to Hitler. Just a person. You could argue that some people are considered to be a bad/good person based on what they do in life. But in the eyes of the person doing it I'd guess they think they are doing good even if it looks bad to everyone else. I dunno, I guess actions make a person a person.
I believe in souls. Good souls and bad souls don't exist. A soul is just a soul. All living things have a soul. I would go into this deeper but I don't want to bring religion into this, as it seems irrelevant to the topic.
I believe it's the concept of a soul that allows us to be given the opportunity to make the good and bad decisions. If we were all the 'perfect' people, well then we wouldn't really be people, now would we?
I never claimed having a soul made a person perfect. I don't need a soul to be the driving force behind any action I do. My mind is what determined that I preform that action. Actions/Minds make a person a person.
I uhm, never said you did. I was just stating my own opinion on the matter. Here look at it this way: A guy is walking around the supermarket and sees somebody drop a bunch of apple everywhere. He goes over to help. Hooray, a nice person. Now, look at a few trials of some other people, let's say a serial killer. Many people say he doesn't have a soul because of the things he did. I believe in the opposite: the soul is what defines human complexity; the choices between right and wrong.
You sounded as if you did. Oh well. What is "right" and what is "wrong" Hitler believed he was right. Racist believe they are right. A lot of people see the actions they do as right even when others see them as wrong. I don't see how adding a soul makes these actions any different. Soul or not, there actions are what define them as a person.
On right and wrong: First off, let's make one thing clear. People change. Knowing this, we can then conclude that they can change towards something. We can also see certain trends in this. Now, let's take one of these trends. We'll call this chain of evolutions the answers train. You'll see why. The first stop, where we all start, is the "duality" phase. Right and wrong exist, and as long as you know them, you are fine. This is the furthest from the truth. Ironically, it's also pretty close. The problem is that at this stage, you need others to tell you what is right, and what is wrong. The next stop, somewhat closer to the truth, is Multiplicity. Here one would think that nothing is right or wrong. This is somewhat closer to the truth than Duality. Here, you no longer rely on the opinions of others, but you also happen to be lost. Not the most pleasant place to be. The second to last stop is Relativity. You realize that while they may not be right or wrong answers or actions, some things are better than others. Thus, you realize that everything is relative, and because of this, you can compare actions and choose one as better, and then explain why. The last, of course, is best described as enlightened Relativity. You know that some things are better, some are worse, and something can be better so much that it might as well be "right". Full circle? Not at all. And yet, right and wrong exist. In the end, you chose what is right and wrong. The greatest problem is if you let others choose for you. </nightblogging>
A person is the ultimate genetic algorithm, keeping track of all their past experiences, and assigning each of them a value as to how good and bad they are. Based on that, we make decisions. But the greatest wonder of all is that we are not computers. A computer can only think in exact values. Thus, it can not comprehend abstractions, and qualitative things in general. How does this even work? We don't know. Because of this, I say that a Person is someone that can think qualitatively, not only quantitatively. Sure, cats, dogs, mice, and all. Those can be people. They may not be human, but they can do everything a person can. Be compassionate. Form social structures and bonds. Have friends, and enemies, and everything in between. If we can confirm qualitative thought, we can confirm emotion. If we can confirm emotion, we can confirm a personality. And what is a person if not a personality with experience?
