Familiar Explainations

[lemmingllama]

Try now to think of what it would be like to be a bat. Think of how it would feel, how you would sense, the differences of using echolocation etc. Then, after you fix this in your mind, read the spoiler below.

Now chew on this. Are you really thinking as a bat would, or are you just attempting to take something incomprehensible and put it in terms of the familiar. Basically, you are trying to think of being a bat as a human, not as a bat. This concept is why we cannot understand the mind, since we are unable to explain it in familiar terms.

Ah, the fun of philosophy!

[† Anras Rune]

Lol. I read a very similar article about this Familiarity Fallacy (at least thats what the article said it was called) and it gave a very similar account. Instead of a bat it was an owl though. Problem with the echolocation example is people can actually learn to do it. Bit like Daredevil. The human mind is capable of doin some pretty amazing things if you hard wire it right... ^.^

[Katongo]

Trying to think that you are in someone else's shoes is hard enough but to try and think that you are not even human would be definitely a challenge in it's own right.

[CaNzCo]

You can also make assumptions on what someone or some creature may be be thinking. I expect a bat to think in terms of primal instincts such as hunger, fear, confusion, or a need to mate. Another possible option would be that they can't think like normal because it may not be self aware. it would feel hungry, but without language it could not actually put those thoughts in a comprehensible order. I assume that would be like doing every action instantaneously without hesitation, since your instincts are all you have. I guess that might be like when you wake up and hit the snooze button on your alarm clock. You can't really think about it... you just make stuff happen.