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Jerry Coyne berates panpsychists and tackles the hard problem of consciousness, surging in bravely:
Panpsychism is the theory—or rather, a hypothesis, since there’s not a shred of evidence supporting it—that every bit of matter in the Universe is conscious in some way. Given the lack of evidence, though, that atoms, rocks, and buckets of water are conscious, we must ask why this crazy hypothesis was proposed, and why it’s undergoing a bit of a resurgence.
I believe it’s because of the “hard problem of consciousness.” That is, so far we don’t understand how the material workings of the brain and body produce the sensations (“qualia”) that consciousness comprises. Now I’m confident that we will one day understand this, but that day is a long way off…
Jerry Coyne, “Panpsychism makes a sneaky return” at Why evolution is true
If we one day understand it, chances are, we won’t be materialists and Darwinists like Jerry Coyne. Also:
One of the philosophers who dines out on his theories of panpsychism is Philip Goff of Durham University, whom we’ve encountered several times before. He’s published a number of articles on panpsychism, and I’ve criticized every one I’ve seen. (Goff has a thin skin, and tries to respond on this site, but he has his own website for that.)
Jerry Coyne, “Panpsychism makes a sneaky return” at Why evolution is true
So did Coyne not give Goff the right of reply? Apparently, he would need a beaker of antacid to read the guy’s book…
Here is a more clued-in critique of panpsychism from Michael Egnor: Why materialism fails as a science-based philosophy: I don’t believe that either panpsychism or cosmopsychism is true. But I have some sympathy with people who hold those views.
And as for the human mind, Coyne puts a lot of faith in “”emergent properties of the brain.”
Along those lines, consider the work of four researchers whose work sheds light on the reality of the mind The brain can be cut in half, but the intellect and will cannot, says Michael Egnor. The intellect and will are metaphysically simple.
See also: A cautious defense of panpsychism (everything is conscious) as an alternative to naturalist despair of the whole field of consciousness
What great physicists have said about immateriality and consciousness
and
You are conscious but so is your coffee mug. Materialists have a solution to the problem of consciousness, and it may startle you.