Curiosity

               We frequently settle at discerning the what and leave behind a curious eager age where we once scrutinized the whys and dissected the hows. It is a cognitive suicide to shoulder life as it presents itself and assume it to be no longer essential to question what one knows. The irony stems from venerating the past 10,000 years in historical developments yet feign to grasp the basic fundamentals of the minute occurrences within our sub-100 years of existence.

 

To probe the presence through root-cause analysis is to constructively fashion a self-tailored future. This does not merely mold our vision in a philosophical approach, rather it empowers us by coalescing and prospering the happy jiffies, and aid in eliminating the bases of malicious phenomenon. Through curiosity, we pave cognitive highways that enrich, amend, enhance, and compose life in a way that will strengthen our individuality.

 

Personal Growth Hinges On Curiosity. 

 

Is The Mind Physical?

           The first law of thermodynamics professes: Energy cannot be created nor destroyed, but only converted from one form to another.

There exists a colossal debate pertaining to the exact entity of the mind; questioning whether mental phenomena are physical or non-physical. Mental states, such as thinking, is one pronounced facet of the mind. So is thinking a physical or a mental process? let us first direct our attention to the following question, is thinking a form of energy? Since energy exists as a physical matter, if the answer is ‘YES‘, then It appears that the first law of thermodynamics perfectly establishes the mind to be a physical entity.

If the ontological relation between the upper-level properties of the mind can be explained by their lower physical level properties, then the mind may be deemed to be a physical object.

Let us take a closer look at the molecular level, the act of thinking requires communication between neurons. Neurons communicate via chemical messengers; namely, neurotransmitters. neuronal communication is mediated by the mechanism ‘action potential propagation’ which itself requires the utilization of a high energy molecule, i.e. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Energy molecules like ATP are merely chemical entities. Thus, mental processes hing on the utilization of energy within a physical molecule. If the presence of ATP in the body ceases, the act of thinking would evidently disappear!

HOWEVER, If brain surgeons would observe a human brain during an instance where the brain is consumed by multiple thoughts; they will remain naive as to what the individual is thinking about. Hence, could there be a third dimension in addition to the two dimensions we traditionally attribute as “physical” or “mental”?

There may be an answer to the above exclamation! A single heart cell (myocardium), or one atria, or one ventricle alone (group of myocardium) are incapable of functioning as a heart. By the same token, one brain cell, or one lobe of the brain is incapable of functioning as a brain. Hence, the new dimension may be elucidated as: The whole gives rise to an entity that is bigger than the sum of its parts. 

Drugs and Human Dignity

            On morality, The German philosopher Immanuel Kant states that one ought treat others as ends in themselves and never merely as means. This, I believe, to be reflexive; namely, one can not treat themselves as a mean or merely a thing.

One’s obligation to oneself consists of a ban against designating their selfhood as a toy to sheer inclinations. This obligation has an exceptionally swaying logic that pertains to human dignity. Since the epitome of human dignity is to never deal with others or yourself merely as a thing, it appears that the manipulation of a human being via drug-induced pleasures should be regarded as an obvious infringement of human dignity. Drug-induced pleasures interfere with one’s selfhood, and they seem to degrade a being to a plaything of inclinations. Thus, human dignity is severed when the emotions are dominated by drug-induced sense of happiness.

Let us go on further in the illustration of drug-induced happiness; here, the individual is dispossessed of the ‘freedom to experience unhappiness’. Submitting the mind to the control of a drug debilitates ‘free will’ and sabotages any neutral inclinations. Dignity fundamentally entails that one’s ‘freedom to feel unhappiness’ is wholly assured, as this is a vital component to the conception of an authentic life. Consequently, individuals under the influence of drugs are conquered by complete undivided plaything of inclinations, and appear be devoid of dignity. 

Extrinsic control of the mind obliterates its intrinsic functional value 

Objectivity is Subjective

           Life is a subjective experience that cannot be fled. All my experiences emanate within my own, personal, and particular perspective. There exists no peer-reviews of my instantaneous perceptions of the world, nor are there any real corroborations of my immediate interactions. This transcends into notable repercussions for the way I live. The first and most pressing realization is that I ought to have faith in my individual experience since no one but me has this angle or point of view. Second, I am in awe as I realize that any ‘objective’ identification I avowal is constructed merely from scratch, by me.

What I construct hinges on the things I’ve read, the events I’ve had, and the folks I’ve encountered. Subjectivity is the fundamental experience; for me, it is life itself. This suggests that no one perceives the world entirely like anybody else; and each of us will ‘live’ in their own individually curated world.

But surely we have one objective reality that is perceived similarly among humans, right? To answer this question we need to define the term “similar”. This terminology obligates a comparison of multiple perspectives; hence, to compare is to reflect upon two subjective perceptions.

Objectivity is nothing more than a collection of interacting atoms and molecules juxtaposed to form clumps of matter, cells, or particles. Henceforth, objectivity can be taken to mean ‘to exist’. Based on one’s experience, culture, expectations, and wishes, it appears that objectivity is merely utilized as the infrastructure to build upon inside the mind, in order to elucidate it all.

The eyes only sense, but the mind perceives