What if you were me and I was you?
Suppose your brain were transplanted into my head. Would that give me a new brain? Would it destroy the memories of my life and give me false memories of yours? Would I become convinced, falsely, that I was you? Or would the operation not give me a new brain, but give you a new body? Who would the resulting person be: me with a new brain, or you with a new body?
The answers may surprise you.
Eric Olson grew up in the deserts of eastern Washington state. Like many philosophers, he spent his childhood wanting to become a scientist, and got hooked on philosophy while reading Plato as an undergraduate. He is currently professor of philosophy at the University of Sheffield.
This is one of five Festival of the Mind philosophy events:
- Yonatan Shemmer on City
- George Botterill on Magic
- Eric Olson on Identity
- Tom Cochrane on Craft
- Stephen Makin on Space
