Metaphysics, intelligence, God

[MrRubix]

Originally Posted by mhss1992

That was not the question, at all. And your body was not reconstituted before the others were created, I didn't say that.

The problem is this: our atoms are swapped during our lifetime, therefore, it's not the individual atoms that define the person.

But, after your body was completely disintegrated, there's nothing else that connects you to those individual atoms. So, if I recreate your body several times, with the same composition and configuration, same thoughts and memories, will one of them actually be you?
Will you only be brought back if I recreate your body with the same individual atoms that formed your original body?

It's not just about bringing someone who feels like you and has your thoughts, it's about "you" coming back from the nothing and perceiving the world from one of those bodies. And it's not as simple as it seems.

Well, it is simple, actually. I feel like you're trying to complicate the matter by forcing this concept of the mind being something separate from the brain, when really the solution doesn't call for it.

I feel like maybe you misunderstood what I meant when I said "atoms don't matter." They DO matter to the extent that different atoms = different person in general, and we both agree with this. If you have something made from X1 atoms and something else made of X2 atoms -- even if both atoms are the same and they form the same structures/functions -- they are different things in different places. Just to clarify, of course -- I know we both agree with this.

This is different from the case of one function/structure that is made up of X1 atoms and swaps out for X2 atoms. Even if I killed a person made of X1 atoms and let it chill for many years such that all its atoms were replaced with X2, it'd come back as the same person. This is different from, say, killing that person made of X1 and then resurrecting a clone made of X2. The clone would be a completely different person even though, in the end, we're bringing back someone made of X2 atoms with the same form/structure as the original being made of X1 atoms. Again, there is a difference between discrete and continuous function, especially regarding different source material. I don't know how to really make it more clear. The answer is a fairly obvious one, and it makes sense. Everything is still explained/maintained, and, furthermore, there is still no need for a soul or some sort of external entity of existence separate from the mind or body.