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It seems to me that we are always being asked to choose sides. Is there a soul/mind, or is the brain responsible for all our behavior. I understand many peoples opposition to choosing sides, maybe it seems too early in the debate, that we don't have enough evidence either way, or simply that its scary to proclaim allegiance to one or the other. Most of all I hear the claim that there is not enough evidence, that there is no proof for or against the existence of an soul, so how can one be asked to make an intelligent choice about its existence. As well as the fear of the implications made by saying that brain=behavior

I feel that the lack of evidence stance misses something key. Indeed there is no evidence for or against the existence of a soul, and we must admit to ourselves that there may never be, but there is a substancial body of work that points strongly in the direction of brain=behavior. PETs. fMRIs, studies of brain injuries, and mental health disorders have given us grains of knowledge that seem to say that as of yet, there is no functional need of a soul. I think most importantly we must realize that there may never be the "hard" evidence we yearn for showing the existence or nonexistence of the soul, and we should stop waiting for it. We must learn to debate and think about this question taking into account the current body of observations and base or inquiries of that.

In response to the fear that come from admitting there may not be a soul. I get it. But I also believe that admitting that the brain might be all there is is not as limiting as people might think. We do not all have the "same" brain, and claiming that the brain is responsible for our behavior is not saying that we must all behave the same, or that we cannot change. Indeed the brain can change quite easily and always is. The existence and strength of the synaptic connections are the medium for change. When we learn a new fact, when we meet a new person, when we spend lots of time with a person (someone we conside a new friend maybe) changes are being made in our brain, every moment. And the specific configuration of strengths and connections amoungst our neurons are what make us individuals. The infinite capacity for permutations of neural connections is mind blowing. I feel that it is hardly limitting at all to think that the brain may be all there is, the brain may be something we will never fully comprehend, something as complex and mystifying as the idea of a soul.