Almost 400 years ago, Rene Descartes made the famous statement "Cogito ergo sum", or "I think, therefore I
am". Several website writers propose "I
am thinking, therefore I exist" as a more accurate translation. I prefer the e-prime statement "I think, therefore I exist", or even "I think right now, therefore I exist right now" as a more accurate description of what Rene probably meant.
Nevertheless, when I hear Rene's statement, I ask myself the following questions:
If I stop "thinking", do I stop to "exist"?
Can I "exist" without "thinking"?
Can I "think" without "existing"?
Can "thinking" take place without an entity that "thinks"?
Does "observing" an entity "think" prove the "existence" of the observer, of the observed entity, or both?
If the entity equals the observer, what proves its existence: "observing", or "thinking", or both, or neither?
Interesting questions, and I don't have a definite answer yet. What do you think?
