Hofstadter, Dennett - The Mind's I

A Conversation with Einstein’s Brain 457really mean I am feeling anything (whatever that would mean!). In the light of allthis, I am beginning to doubt if such phrases have any meaning at all.TORTOISE: Well, of course, utterances about "feeling" one way or an other are veryuseful, in practical terms.ACHILLES: Oh, without doubt-I shan't shun them just because this conversation hastaken place; nor shall I shun the term "I," as you can see for yourself. But I won'timbue it with such "soulful" meaning as I have heretofore tended to do, ratherinstinctively, and, I have to say, dogmatically.TORTOISE: I am glad that for once we seem to be in agreement in our conclusions. I seethat the hour is growing late; dusk is approaching -just the time when all myforces seem to gather, and I feel quite energetic. I know you must have beendisappointed by the "no-show" of your friend; how's about a little footrace back tothe fifth century B.C.?ACHILLES: What a capital idea! But just to be fair, I'll give you a head start of, oh, threecenturies, since I'm so fleet of foot.TORTOISE: You're a mite cocky, Achilles.... You may not find it so easy to catch upwith an Energetic Tortoise.ACHILLES: Only a fool would bet on a slow-footed Tortoise, racing against me. Lastone to Zeno's house is a monkey's uncle!Reflections"Well, all these fantasies have been fun, but they can't really tell us anything. They're justso much science fiction. If you want to learn the truth-the hard facts-about something,you have to turn to real science, which so far has had little to tell us about the ultimatenature of the mind." This response conjures up a familiar but impoverished vision ofscience as a collection of precise mathematical formulae, meticulous experiments, andvast catalogues of species and genera, ingredients and recipes. This is the picture ofscience as strictly a data-gathering enterprise in which imagination is tightly reined in byincessant demands for proof. Even some scientists have this vision of their profession,and are