Post by @bunchberry@lemmy.world

2026-10-23 03:00 UTC

there is a philosophical distinction between the physical world and your perception Proof? RGB is measuring/defining proportions of different wavelengths of light We knew about colors long before anyone knew what a “wavelength of light” is. I can tell something is red without needing to measure its photons. There are correlations between red, green, and blue, but they are not exact. Monitors do a lot of weird things with colors and so it is just false to state that there is a direct equivalence to color values and wavelengths of light that the monitor will actually emit. I am using “internal experience” to mean the subjective way that you percieve the world. How do I perceive the world “subjectively”? What does that even mean? Is it possible to perceive the world “objectively”? But if you are using the word “experience” to mean “C is happening to you” then yes, the external experience is the thing that is physically happening and the internal experience is your perception of it happening to you. So all you mean by “subjective experience” is that the things are happening to me specifically? So, if thing happens to another thing, and one of those things is a subject, then it is subjective? That is a strange way to use the word “subjective.” If I eat a sandwich, is that subjective eating?

Replies (1)

@Feathercrown@lemmy.world 2026-10-23 03:11

What do you mean “proof”? Proof that the field of philosophy considers there to be a distinction? I pointed you to a great resource to learn about this, the proof that philosophers think there is a distinction and the details of how and why they believe that (and common arguments against it if that’s your jam!) are RIGHT THERE in the link I provided. This is not some crackpot theory I am trying to prove to you in a lemmy thread, I am just explaining philosophy of mind 101. Like, this is literally related to “I think, therefore I am”. If you disagree with philosophy in general then I’m not going to spend several hours justifying the entire field of philosophy to you; I’ve pointed you in the right direction, if you want to learn more about it then just read the basics, they can explain it better than I can and it’s much less argumentative that way. Seriously, I recommend it, it’s a good time and it’s a fun way to explore the nature of your mind. To answer your edits (briefly, again this is covered in the link or any similar resource): Your eyes measure the photons and cause your brain to produce the subjective experience of “red”. Nothing about this relies on you knowing how photons work. Monitors vary and rgb doesn’t correlate directly to light wavelength, but it therefore also does not correlate directly with your subjective experience. Your subjective experience also does not always line up with wavelengths of light-- are you familiar with the optical illusion where one shade of (physical) grey is percieved as lighter or darker based on context? This is another great example of qualia vs physical properties, the light from both grey squares has the same physical properties but causes different qualia based on context(!) It is not possible to percieve the world objectively. In the phrase “subjective way that you percieve the world”, I am again just using “subjective” the same way I used “internal”, ie. to emphasize that I am talking about your experience of the world and not the actual world itself (think of how you percieve the grey squares in the above illusion rather than how they are physically the same color). So all you mean by “subjective experience” is that the things are happening to me specifically? No, by “internal experience” or “subjective experience” I mean that I am referring to your perception of the thing happening. If I coat a rock in honey, it becomes sticky. If I coat your arm in honey, it also becomes sticky. What “subjective experience” refers to is what you feel and percieve when I am coating your arm in honey. It’s what you have that the rock doesn’t-- your thoughts, perceptions, feelings, etc. So, if thing happens to another thing, and one of those things is a subject, then it is subjective? That is a strange way to use the word “subjective.” If I eat a sandwich, is that subjective eating? Not sure what you’re saying here, but see above.

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