Re: Life without evolution/evolution without life

[Judith Rosen <***>]

Hi Howard,

This came in just before I was going to sign off. I'll answer most of your
email tomorrow, but there was one thing that needs immediate clarification.
This exchange:

[Judith] Incidentally, I would say that my father was after much more
than "a causal, explanatory model of life"-- He was after the truth; a full
understanding of why living things are alive.

[Howard] Incidentally, I would say that your father is not alone in seeking
the truth. What exactly would a full understanding require "much more" of
besides full (Aristotelean) causal explanations?

I had one of those "AHA!" moments when I read this-- I was answering a
different question than the one you have in your response: See the part in
quotes in my statement? "A causal explanatory MODEL of life" is what you
said my father was in pursuit of. So I said he was after more than an
explanatory model, he was after the truth (because we all know that some
explanatory models are not true models of what they are designed to explain,
right?). The way you phrase it in your response is a different animal, and
better describes what Dad was interested in. Don't you think there's a big
difference between "a causal explanatory MODEL" and a "full (Aristotelean)
causal EXPLANATION"? Maybe I'm being too literal, and if so, I apologize.
It's late! More discussion tomorrow.

Judith