tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1089082204850170942.post714925742349076371..comments2024-03-21T12:52:08.166+11:00Comments on Freedom and Flourishing: Does brain plasticity have implications for the idea of progress?Winton Bateshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07383561940886657594noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1089082204850170942.post-62902255372373225442010-01-20T17:36:35.269+11:002010-01-20T17:36:35.269+11:00Thanks for your comment, Martin.
I see the merit...Thanks for your comment, Martin. <br /><br />I see the merit of persistence, but progress must also depend at times on our ability to cut our losses and change direction. Perhaps what you are saying is that from an evolutionary perspective the developments that represent progress - those that are best suited to the world we live in - are those that persist.<br /><br />Anyhow, I'll know what you mean after I have read your book. I've ordered a copy.Winton Bateshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07383561940886657594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1089082204850170942.post-24279101865821304992010-01-19T23:45:38.942+11:002010-01-19T23:45:38.942+11:00This is fascinating, Winton.
Grappling with such ...This is fascinating, Winton.<br /><br />Grappling with such dissonant viewpoints from strong and eloquent minds it is easy to lose sight of the central question with regard to freedom and progress.<br /><br />Can we have progress without freedom? The answer, both in abstraction and reality, is surely, no. <br /><br />A lack of freedom implies constraint, and constraint limits development, thereby impinging upon progress.<br /><br />In the real world this means that any attempt to constrain the greater part of a society will constrain that society's overall progress.<br /><br />In order to understand whether the history of human society reflects progress we need only look backward. Dip into the history of pretty much any society and one will find quantifiable evidence of progress over the long haul.<br /><br />But we need to be able to define "progress." Progress must be defined in an objective way before it can be quantified.<br /><br />My own definition of progress is a movement in favor of "that which ultimately promotes persistence." Sometimes a difficult thing to measure or predict, but not always so, and always concrete.<br /><br />(I've outlined all of this in my book - LIFE! Why We Exist... which is available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.) <br /><br />Lastly, how does this relate to the scientific findings of brain plasticity? <br /><br />As you have pointed out, brain plasticity can lead to productive or unproductive changes in the way our brains function. It is "progress neutral" in that regard. But, so is essentially any new mode of influence of humanity. Art is progress neutral. Education is progress neutral. Philosophy is progress neutral.<br /><br />But when human beings have the freedom to choose and guide such new potentials they tend to use them and guide them in ways that promote progress, i.e., "persistence."<br /><br />We'll always have the misguided and malignant actors who go the other way and seek to limit freedoms, but overall, I believe, we tend to ultimately seek our own persistence and the persistence of those we care about - which for many extends to the whole of humanity.<br /><br />Martin Walker<br />http://www.rationalphilosophy.net<br />http://www.mindsparke.comMartin Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18096494838190749857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1089082204850170942.post-14768298304598744492010-01-19T15:21:59.162+11:002010-01-19T15:21:59.162+11:00Pak Karamu visiting your blogPak Karamu visiting your blog~PakKaramu~https://www.blogger.com/profile/09409943711766293201noreply@blogger.com