Re: [Fis] Information, autopoiesis, life and semiosis

Despite my harsh words about autopoiesis, it is surely accurate to a first approximation, and I agree with Pedro about trying to retain what is good about the idea as much as possible, since much is good.

On levels, I think we need to develop ways to test whether or not observed levels are artefacts of our methods for each case. This is something we normally do (or should do) in other areas of science, so it is not really a novel idea. Testing for dynamical closure of a supposed level seems to me to be a generally useful approach. (All general levels -- types of things -- are mental by definition, and thus should be treated as artefacts _until_ tests show otherwise).

Professor John Collier
Philosophy, University of Natal
Durban 4041 South Africa
T: +27 (31) 260 3248 / 260 2292
F: +27 (31) 260 3031
email: collierj@nu.ac.za
http://nu.ac.za/undphil/collier
>>> "Pedro C. Mariju�n" <marijuan@unizar.es> 01/26/04 16:22 PM >>>

I agree with most of the other recent messages. Autopoiesis belongs more to
the past than to the present. However, it looks very interesting that we
try to cash out its pros and cons. About the 'level' stuff (Soeren and
Viktoras), maybe it is not such docile a creature as depicted. Levels might
have a dual origination: in part they belong to nature 'joints' but also to
our epistemic limitations in the 'scaffold' of disciplinary floors built
around nature herself (not always coinciding with the joints themselves).
Often it is quite difficult to disentangle the scaffold floors from those
of the edifice inside.

By the way, addressed to Rafael, Soeren, and other parties, in the most
simple and general way, what is meaning?

best

Pedro

At 15.33 23/1/04 +0100, you wrote:
>Dear Pedro,
>
>I have a simple question: can molecular biologists detect different kind
>of 'languages' (or 'codes') that allow 'understanding' or
>'misunderstanding' (or 'signal transmission') between the cells? And, if
>this is the case, how are they built?
>
>Rafael
>

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Received on Mon Jan 26 20:43:13 2004