Re: virus: but do they think?
ken sartor (sartor@lanl.gov)
Tue, 19 Mar 1996 10:18:22 -0600
At 10:19 PM 3/18/96 -0700, James T. Martin wrote:
>At 10:44 PM 3/17/96 -0600, you wrote:
>>Ronald Ferruci insists that since we can't prove that the animals can't
>think it is quite possible that they might think.
>>This is no different than saying that god exists because we can't prove
>that he doesn't.
>>I personally will continue thinking that the animals can't think until
>someone proves me that they can.
>>
>From all of the latest discoveries by animal behaviorist and other
>zoological scientists, the question of wether or not SOME animals can think
>in the human concept of that term, is mute. There are now quite a few
^^^^
>studies indicating this. Intelligence, like just about everything else, is a
>continuum. It is not a black/white issue. All participants in the
>discussions on this site would be advised to leave binary thinking at the
>door before you enter. I think we all realize that many people MUST hold to
>the concept that man is on a totally different plane than the animals. This
>allows them to feel good about themselves and doesn't conflict with what
>they learned in Sunday school. Understandable for past knowledge - but we're
>in a new age now. The past is characterized with a destruction of the earth
>- we must now understand new ideas in order to save it from ourselves.
MUTE - or moot? (Big difference in this context ;)