In the reading, Mind and Brain: The First Night, we meet Mary the materialist, Dave the dualist and Steve the skeptic. Although I think that the arguments are less than exemplary, I think that overall the arguments made in the reading are understandable. The part that really made sense to me was the discussion about the principle of simplicity. It states that if there are two theories that explain the exact same number of observations, then the one that should be chosen is the one that posits less or is simpler. I think that this makes thing a lot easier. Mary claims that this principle should guide people to choose materialism seeing as it is a simpler explanation to the mind-body dilemma. However, Dave disagrees with Mary about this. He believes that scientific theories shouldn’t be applied to metaphysical matters like the mind-body argument. I agree with Mary, that the simpler the theory, the more believable it is. Any theory should be capable of being applied to a question of any topic.
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I do agree, that more often than not simpler is easier to believe. And i do agree with some of mary’s arguments. Its true, Science has not proved, explained, or even found evidence towards any sort of soul or after life. But Sience hasnt really found anything that proves it isnt true either. Never once has a scientist found cold hard evidence that shows souls and after life impossable. So if you arguing there is no scientific evedience for souls, simply a logical explaination of the brain , and this is why we should believe the ideas of a materialist, i argue …. there are just as many logical explainations as to souls and after lifes, and NO scientific proof against it either.