> Human cognition was basically bruteforced by evolution
This is an assumption, not a fact. Perhaps human cognition was created by God, and our minds have an essential spiritual component which cannot be reproduced by a purely physical machine.
This is an assumption, not a fact. Perhaps human cognition was created by God, and our minds have an essential spiritual component which cannot be reproduced by a purely physical machine.
What’s NOT supported by evidence is an unknowable, untestable spiritual requirement for cognition.
I'm sympathetic to the idea that God started the whole shebang (that is, the universe), because it's rather difficult to disprove, but looking at the biological weight of evidence that brain structures evolved over many different species and arguing that something magical happened with homo sapiens specifically is not an easy argument to make for someone with any faith in reason.
there are clear links for at least 2 evolutionary paths: bird brain architecture is very different from that of mammals and some are among the smartest species on the planet. they have sophisticated language and social relationships, they can deceive (meaning they can put themselves inside another's mind and act accordingly), they solve problems and they invent and engineer tools for specific purposes and use them to that effect. give them time and these bitches might even become our new overlords (if we're still around, that is).
No one has gathered evidence of cognition from fossil records.
Obviously cognition isn’t a binary thing, it’s a huge gradient, and the tree of life shows that gradient in full.
That doesn’t follow.
The counter-hypothesis (we think because some kind of magic happens) has absolutely nothing to show for; proponents typically struggle to even define the terms they need, much less make falsifiable predictions.
besides, spirituality is not a "component", it's a property emergent from brain structure and function, which is basically purely a physical machine.