Mathematics and Cognition Seminar Fall 2008 Tuesdays 12:15 PSA 206 Seminar Schedule: <http://math.la.asu.edu/~tom/cognition/math+cogsched.html> Cookies and Coffee Starting at 12:00 Note the New Location! Map ("X" marks the spot) |
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On Tuesday, September 30, at 12:15 in PSA 206, the Mathematics and Cognition Seminar will present a discussion with |
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"Religion from a Purely Scientific Point of View" |
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Abstract Schism between science and religion points to a psychosis of contemporary collective psyche, wrote C. Jung, and survival of culture demands repairing this schism. Many outstanding scientists are trying to mend it. Many books are written arguing that the newest scientific discoveries in physics, molecular biology, evolution, and cosmology do not contradict the main tenets of the world's religions. But there is no scientific theory, explaining religion. "Everyone who is seriously involved in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe." This Einsteinian statement remains outside of science. Understanding of the mind mechanisms today came close to explaining religion from scientific point of view. Traditional and scientific understandings of human nature are coming together. The talk tells about the knowledge instinct (KI), which drives the growth of the mind, is responsible for our higher mental abilities for symbolic thinking, sublime, beautiful and, for evolution of cultures. KI operates within the hierarchy (or heterarchy) of the human mind. At the top of the hierarchy are concepts unifying our entire knowledge; we perceive them as concepts of the meaning and purpose of our existence. These concepts are inherently vague and unconscious and their very existence is in great doubt. The talk relates these doubts to cognitive science and to Godel theory; choices of beautiful and sublime involve more information than all elementary interactions in the Universe. A possibility of these choices is appropriately called a miracle in traditional language; but today we can understand it scientifically. The talk explains why the KI eliminates the contradiction between scientific causality and religious teleology. The KI is at once causal and teleological. The human mind and cultures evolve causally but also as if they know their purpose: increase of knowledge. This purposefulness is possibly the greatest discovery of the monotheistic religion, which tradition ascribes to Abraham. The talk relates this purposefulness to the beautiful and sublime. Contents of the highest concepts of meanings and emotions of beautiful and sublime are unconscious. They are "collective" outside of consciousness. Consciousness does not control them, they control our consciousness. Therefore, we feel them as a source of agency outside of ourselves. In traditional language it is called God. |