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Originally Posted by shelltree
Not necessarily Craig though I'm certain our experiences have been shaped by our parents from an early age and therefore the function of the mind swayed by what they believe but there comes a point where we become an independent being. The DNA carried down through birth would of course have an influence on a person but that is more genetic and physical and perhaps not so much to do with the mind philosophically.
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But the mind is also a function of physiology, and DNA as well as a bunch of complex processes, built your brain.
It is scientific fact that DNA can be altered by the environment.
There is an inescapable duality about physiology and environmental changes.
Where it starts and finishes … is the mystery ..
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Originally Posted by shelltree
What I meant by my statement is that if a person were to somehow lose all memory of themselves and everything else that had happened in their lives, characteristics still remain that make them who they are, no matter if they don't know themselves. "Gut feeling" for instance or certain integral morals and emotions that shape a person, all come from the brain and the way in which it is used. Is the person more likely to think with the left hemisphere of the brain or right. Are these differences programmed at birth or are they shaped by experience?
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Both - depends on which aspect.
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Originally Posted by shelltree
If they are shaped by experience then I suppose rebirth would indeed be like starting again from scratch, with no physical stimuli to shape who "they" become but if it is shaped by the formation of the brain in the womb, then it seems a possibility that if a person were reborn with similar or the same physical characteristics (perhaps with exterior changes) then their brain would produce the same reactions to emotion, thought and processes.
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We all produce the same primal reactions to emotions. That part is instinctive. How we display them, is an entirely different matter as this is more a function of behaviour .. and behaviours are easily modified, hence the variations you observe.
We a re called 'Human Beings' … and that might mean that we can 'Be' anything we want !
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Originally Posted by shelltree
I hope this makes some form of sense and that I'm not rambling for nothing. I am enjoying this discussion thoroughly. It is great to talk with such intelligent people about such thought provoking things. |
You're welcome. Gee, I hope I'm not included in the intelligent category … we need some more instinctiveness around here.
Good to see you at the Science Forum !
Cheers