Mental processes are physical is equivalent to what is coined The Identity Theory. Smart’s theses is that mental events are identical to brain processes. The definition ofneurophysiological is to say the science of neurons dealing with living matter such as thebrain. Smart discounts Cartesian Dualism that depicts the mind as a separate entity thanthe physical body. In addition, Smart’s theory is a posteriori claim, which is to say thatthrough an observation or senses we can come to a factual conclusion. The IdentityTheory makes a prediction concerning science and that is that in the future man will beable to know by fact that the mind is no more than a physically charged form of matter. In human speech and language we are accustomed to using different terms that havethe same meaning. The classic example is the sensation of pain. A person upon feelingpain declares, “I am in pain;” however, the fact that there exists in the bodyneurotransmitters that fire through synapses to the mass of the brain that cause the brainmatter to fire additional neurons; thus causing the sensation of pain, is the samedefinition as the declaration of I feel pain. The Identity Theory depends on past discoveries that have discounted superstitiousbeliefs. Sober uses the example of lightning. He points out that according to the Greeks,lightning was understood to be a possession of the Greek god, Zeus. However, later mandiscovered through science that electricity was responsible for the white bolts of heat. Inthe same way, the Identity Theory dives into the future of the sciences to explain thehuman mind. According to Cartesian Dualism the mind has no matter or substance and is separatefrom the physical body. In the Identity Theory, the mind is one with the brain and thereexists no separation of the two. Descartes recognized that the body and even the brainhad mass, but he believed in a casual interaction be...
