The problem of other mind

The Space of All Possible Experiences

In process philosophy, many philosophers believe that the only truth we know is our experience - what we can feel, what can appear in our awareness, our consciousness. For example, there is a field of vision where you can see some things and can’t see others. Sounds exist, but you can’t see them. The field of eyesight includes all the things that you can see. Things that you can hear don’t necessarily mean you can see them.

There might be a field where thoughts can appear. The most fundamental thing is what we can experience - the entire field of experience, the entire field of awareness. We can feel sadness, happiness, joy, irritation. We can feel touch, smell, taste, sight. These are all fundamental sensations.

The Process of Experiencing

The second question is about the process of experiencing. What is the thing which is experiencing? How is the process of experiencing happening? What is the core of all experience? Is it a mixture of multiple pieces? Can we create something outside of us which can experience like this?

The Problem of Other Minds

This leads to the problem of other minds. Even if we are able to create something which might be able to experience as we do, how can we measure or test that the entity in front of us is having a similar experience or awareness? How can we prove that other minds exist?

A philosopher at IIT Bhubaneswar suggested that if you delve deep into this question, you might conclude that there is only one mind that exists - your own. But this is just one of the possible possibilities that we can entertain.

Implications for Artificial Intelligence

The problem of other minds is also important for the field of artificial intelligence. How will we know if the AI system we build is experiencing something? How will we know it is having conscious awareness? When will we be able to tell them they are conscious or give them individuality? When will we be able to treat them with respect? How much exactly do we have to do to achieve that? These are questions to think about.