Knowledge Tree
Relations (1)
cross_type 2.58 — strongly supporting 5 facts
Philip Goff is a philosopher who extensively analyzes the nature of matter, arguing that physics only describes its quantitative behavior rather than its intrinsic character {fact:2, fact:4}. He posits that matter possesses a consciousness-involving nature [1] and draws upon historical distinctions regarding the properties of matter established by figures like Galileo [2] and Bertrand Russell [3] to support his neo-Russellian monist perspective.
Facts (5)
Sources
Critique of Panpsychism: Philosophical Coherence and Scientific ... thequran.love 4 facts
claimContemporary panpsychists, such as Philip Goff, argue that while modern science excels at modeling the mathematical relationships and behavior of matter, it fails to explain why matter behaves in that way or what underlies those patterns.
accountPhilip Goff recounts that Galileo Galilei established a sharp distinction between the quantitative, mathematically describable aspects of matter and the qualitative aspects like colors, sounds, and feelings, stipulating that physics would confine itself to the former.
perspectivePhilip Goff argues that by limiting physics to the quantitative aspects of matter, science rendered consciousness invisible to physical theory by design, leaving physics to describe what matter does rather than what it is intrinsically.
claimPhilip Goff and Galen Strawson advocate for a neo-Russellian monist view of consciousness, which is based on Bertrand Russell's insight that physics reveals the structure of matter but not its intrinsic character.
Panpsychism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy/Fall 2025 Edition) plato.stanford.edu 1 fact
perspectivePhilip Goff (2016, 2017, 2019a) argues that because the intrinsic nature of brain matter is consciousness-involving, the most simple and parsimonious hypothesis is that matter outside of brains also possesses a consciousness-involving nature.