Ways of Worldmaking by Nelson Goodman (review)

Leonardo, Vol. 14,No. 3,pp. 247-261,1981. Printed in Great Britain. 0024-094X/8 1/030247-15$02.00/0 Pergamon Press Ltd. BOOKS Readers are invited to recommend books to be reviewed In general, only books in English and in French can be reviewed at this stage. Those who would like to be added to Leonardo’s panel of reviewers should write to the FounderEditor , indicating their particular interests. Tbe Human Mystery: The Gifford Lectures, University of Edinburgh 1977-1978. John C. Eccles. Springer, New York, 1979.255 pp., illus. $18.70.Reviewed by Anne K.Uemura* These Lectures were endowed ‘to promote and diffuse the study of Natural Theology in the widest sense of that term. ..’,and Eccles proposes to present an argument against those who believe that science is powerful enough to explain everything in the not too distant future. He states in his Preface that his descriptions of the newest advances in science are intended to reveal the human mysterythat liesbeyond scientificexplanation. The scope of the coverage is wide, and the detailed accounts are replete with impressive technical information. He begins with a discussion about the beginningof the universeand the formation of the solar system, continues with a description of the origin of life and the course of human evolution, and ends with a detailed review of recent research on the human brain. In the light of his immensely ambitious task, I perhaps can forgive Eccles for becoming so enraptured by the stories of the achievementsof sciencethat hesometimesneglectshis thesis. It is most coherently stated in the early lectures: The formation of the universe and of the galaxy and the solar system of which the Earth is a planet seems to reflect a grand design. The chain of contingency that began with the assumed ‘Big Bang’ and that resulted in an environment fit to produce life as it is known on Earth seems too mysterious without the added assumption of some purpose behind the design. Kimura (1967)is quoted as stating: ‘The human species represents an unbelievably lucky outcome in the game of evolution; we are like a gambler that has been kept winning all the time in the past.’ The character of the human mystery is less clearly articulated in his accounts of ‘the fossilized record‘ and the ‘cultural evolution with language and values’. Finally, in Lecture 7,the mysteryof how each unique self is developed is only mentioned. Thus, if Eccles’early comments about his purpose in these Lectures are only dimly remembered, readers can enjoy the wealth of information provided. I found Eccles’style ofpresentation best seen in the last three Lectures, which focus on the human brain-his research speciality. Although he describes in much detail the complex neuronal activity involved in perception, learning and memory, he fails to develop his argument that these complex neuronal events described by brain researchers cannot account for subjective experience. He merely states that the transmutation from objective brain events to conscious subjectiveexperienceis mysterious. His answer to this problem, which is the difficult mind-body problem that has plagued philosophers forcenturies, is a dualist interactionism. He proposes that the self-conscious mind interacts with neuronal modules in the liaison areas of the cerebral hemispheres (including the speech areas and the prefrontal lobes) to provide the unity of conscious experience. I doubt that this new version of interactionism is a scientific answer. Thus, by example, he affirms his thesis that sciencehas not provided a proper solution to a knotty philosophical problem. But the logician will note that his presentation does not constitute an argument that the answer lies beyond science. For readers who have a willingnessto embrace and dwell on mysteries, the book is excellent in providing clear details from contemporary scientific research to clothe the mysteries in new dress. But nonscientist readers should be prepared to encounter sometimes overwhelming technical details. The most serious disappointment, however, will be for general readers whoexpect a productive blend of theology and science. In short, the human mystery remains largely undisclosed. Ways of Worldmaking. Nelson Goodman. Harvester Press, Hassocks, Sussex, England, 1978.142pp.. illus. €6.50.Reviewed by Jon W. Sharer* Scientists and others have long sought to determine...