"it is not clear how certain organisations of matter manage to be aware – of impingements of energy, and later of objects"
The oldest life forms in existence have this awareness.
Keeping in mind that definitions are arbitrary, still it must be admitted that even bacteria sense changes in temperature, light, density, and other forms of energy, and they "respond" to various environmental stimuli like we do on facebook: Like or dislike. The point is that your attempt to elevate humans into some special arena simply fails. Many creatures have far superior attributes than have we. Yes we are different. We are what we are: Still helpless in the air, in the water, and on the land--inferior to the eagle, the dolphin, the lion. Yet we have overcome our inferiority through the capacity to learn and to communicate our knowledge to our offspring. But there are some humans who cannot learn and who cannot use tools and who would die without constant care--lowly rats and vermin would overcome them with little effort. |
