An Interview with Douglas R. Hofstadter, following ''I am a Strange Loop''

		Tracy writes in reply to dr knowitall: conversation ender If this were the case then Science could never be allowed to venture closer to discovering the unexplained mystical aspects of ourselves or the universe. The huge field of Psychology has sprung out of looking at mystical-like aspects of the human being from the 'soul' to the unconscious. The 'soul', in whatever format, is an unexplained entity by science and a large chunk of who we are. If one were to define one's terms clearly I think one could venture towards empirically addressing this entity. I personally see religion as an entirely man-made concept that serves to interpret the metaphysical universe that we are aware of. Religion need not enter the equation, since in this case we are not interested in the man-made concept but rather the unexplained metaphysical part of ourselves. The concept of 'soul' is available outside of the context of religion and I believe it is the best possible word for the context that Prof. Hofstadder could have used.
		[338] Posted on Thursday, 19 June 2008 at 14:15 GMT [Reply to this] [Permalink]