Recognising other minds: the irreducibly inductive problem
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) May 26, 2026 Daniel Reidpath
The attribution of mind to others is irreducibly inductive and cannot be resolved by any observational or inferential method, including behavioral testing, neuroimaging, or hypothetical direct mental access. Even a Vulcan mind-meld, if taken seriously, collapses the distinction between minds that makes verification meaningful. The epistemic gap is inherent in what it means for distinct minds to exist. Consequently, the boundary between what is considered mindful and what is not is a collective negotiation, not a discovery, and declarations like the Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness settle thresholds, not facts. This raises the possibility of unrecognized minds in different material arrangements and warrants skepticism about confident denials that AI has consciousness.