Posted by Woody on January 25, 19101 at 07:57:30:
In Reply to: Re: Christ OS: ? about evolution posted by Charlotte on January 24, 19101 at 16:36:49:
Charlotte wrote: "As I'm not a computer whiz, I'm wondering if something similar could be said about the "evolution" of computer operating systems?"
There are some who would maintain that there is something qualitatively different in each realm as we ascend the hierarchy of being but that this ontological discontinuity is only an appearance.
Surely, at each stage, the whole appears greater than the sum of its parts and this is why "vitalism" and dualism were proposed to explain the increasing complexity observed as we ascend the chain of being.
On one hand, the hierarchical universe (some would say multiverse) does not need ontological discontinuity to explain away emerging complexity. Complexity Theory and Chaos Theory combined with the unfathomable periods of time available for pure chance to work, billions upon billions of years, are all science needs for a general paradigm of both cosmic and biological evolution.
On the other hand, science is only dealing with those questions pertaining to the realm of space-time-matter-energy, or where?-when?-what?-how? (see the connection?).
Philosophy asks the question: "Why?" and the question of "Who?" is the domain of myth and religion where theologians practice their science.
If human nature is an operating system, in another sub-thread, someone mentioned that the operating system might could be considered, on one hand, impersonally, as an "it", on the other hand, personally, as a "Thou".
For those here who conceive of it all as ontologically continuous, totally nondualistically, materially, naturally, or what have you, the operating system can properly be studied in the realms of science and philosophy.
In science, we'd study the biological substrates of the psychological dynamics. In philosophy, we'd study the metaphysical implications.
For those here who propose ontological discontinuity, dualistically, supernaturally, etc, the operating system would then properly be studied by theology. What, for instance, are the supernatural virtues? the theological virtues? the divine graces? which are being added?
So, back to your original questions: The theologians would say that the Windows 2000 now running on our Mac platforms were gratuitously put there and could not have resulted from evolutionary processes where OS 1 eventually became OS 9.6 and then a beta release of OS 10 which, one morning, cold-booting, spontaneously evolved into Windows 2000! I'll let the materialists/naturalists develop their own metaphor for how what we claim to be PxOS can be running on an alien platform.
gotta run,
Woody