@InfraBlue,
Quote:"Not wanting to be eaten" and "fear of death" are results of higher brain functions, e.g. consciousness, that aren't required to avoid being eaten.
The point of my new understanding is,
no, they are not.
We humans like to flatter ourselves with discussions of our "higher brain functions" as though it was an exclusive quality that only humans have. In fact, our vaunted "consciousness" is a property that animals possess in common in a continuum.
My wife and I were discussing the remarkable mental capabilities of our dog just this morning. He anticipates the future and remembers the past. He makes decisions independently based on an understanding of the consequences of events. He expresses a whole range of emotions and understands quite a few words. What is "consciousness" if not that?
So, your insistence that "fear of death" is an exclusive result of higher brain functions is very close to the same error that I was making. The relationship is the exact opposite. Higher brain functions result from the interaction of the multiplicity of stimulus-response pairs that have evolved over time and this multiplicity exists in the most elementary animals but not in the same combinations and as life becomes more simple, not in the same complexity.
Again ... thanks for the comment that has given me a reason to write down and therefore more fully complete my understanding.
