[MD] On Pirsig's letter to Paul Turner

[Dan Glover]

Craig,

On Wed, Jul 27, 2016 at 7:51 AM, Craig Erb <craig_erb at ymail.com> wrote:
> [Craig]
>> IMHO DNA is an inorganic pattern [as is carbon], so they are inappropriate for distinguishing the two respective levels.
>
> [Dan]
>> A genetic code is peculiar to the biological level whereas carbon is not.
>
> You need to know what pattern is at the biological level before you can discover that DNA is its genetic code.  Therefore, DNA cannot be the criteria for the biological level, only a derivative symptom of it.

Dan:
Isn't that like saying you need to know what pattern is at the
intellectual level before you can discover ideas? Therefore, ideas
cannot be the criteria for the intellectual level?

>
> [Dan]
>> You know your own experience. But how do you know another biological pattern's experience? For instance, how do you
>> know what scrambled eggs taste like to a cockroach?
>
> I don't, of course, nor do I know what scrambled eggs taste like to anyone else but me.  But this doesn't prevent me from knowing all sorts of things about other living things' experience.  For instance, I know an amoeba doesn't value acid, because I see it back away.

Dan:
You can infer all sorts of things about other living things'
experience. You cannot know. Not like your own.

Dan

http://www.danglover.com