> I suppose you could prove it as much as any other feeling, by observing the way that people behave

Look up the term "philosophical zombie".

In a nutshell, you can simulate a conscious being using a non-conscious (zombie) being. It is possible to simulate it so well that an outside observer can't tell the difference. If this is true, then the corollary is that you can't really know if other people are conscious. You can only tell that you are.

For all intents and purposes I might be the only one who has consciousness in the universe, and I can't prove otherwise.

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zeroonetwothree 3 days ago | parent [-]

I don't think you are using the phrase "it is possible" correctly. There's certainly no evidence that a philosophical zombie is "possible". I think there are strong arguments that it's not possible.

	▲	selcuka 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Well, I could have been clearer, but it was a proposition, hence the "If this is true" in the following sentence. That being said, I don't think those counter arguments really invalidate the philosophical zombie thought experiment. Let's say that it is not possible to simulate a conscious being with 100% accuracy. Does the difference really matter? Does a living organism need consciousness as an evolutionary advantage? Isn't it reasonable to assume that all human beings are conscious just because they all pass the Turing test, even if they are not?