Guide Questions for Your Reading Assignment November 14, 2001

1. Is there a relationship between action and moral behavior?

It appears that some actions have no direct relationship with moral behavior. This is so because sometimes, people do act spontaneously. When people are acting spontaneously, they are acting out of their nature. This means that some actions are simply a form of reflections and contain no particular moral concepts within them.

2. What is the purpose of the eight principles offered by Searl?

The main purpose of the eight principles is to describe what action is. Actions are individuals’ projected mental aspects.

3. State your idea of what the social sciences are. What does Searl observe about the social sciences?

I think that social sciences deal with psychological aspects of behavior. Searl observes that unlike natural sciences, social sciences do not have laws. Since each individual grows up in different space and time, stating a law about any psychological aspect that all individuals share is impossible.

4. Do Searl’s observations about the social sciences challenge conventional ideas about their role in society?

Searl’s observations about the social sciences do challenge conventional ideas about the roles social sciences have in society.

5. What is "common sense" the Searle uses the term?

Common sense is nature of individuals’. Common sense is the sum of both consciousness and unconsciousness. Common sense is the sum of both intention and spontaneity.

6. Try to tease out the relationship between and among the ideas of: artificial intelligence; action; free will; moral action?

I do not think artificial intelligence could act out freely with its own intention since it is programmed to act in a particular way. Also, artificial intelligence would not be able to carry out the moral action simply because it would not understand the true moral action.