Do animals have souls?

What is the fundamental difference between seeing genes under a microscope and "experiencing their expressions"? In either one, the "experience" of genes is mediated by levels and levels of other interactions--in the seeing case, it is the interaction of the genes with light, the interaction fo the light with glass, the interaction of the light with the lens in your eye and the interaction of that light with the photoreceptive cells in your retina. Which interact with the ganglion cells in your eye, which interact with the LGN in your midbrain (did I miss a step there?), which interact with multiple subsystem, etc, etc.For those who believe in materialism, I think the type of argument you present is bogus. I think you're going to have a hard time making distinctions like "I" and "experiencing" in the way you're trying to do. Those are dualist concepts as far as I can see, and only work in that paradigm. I see a reason why: genes are too low-level to adequately explain "self", just like quantum electrodynamics is too low-level to adequately explain the motion of grasses when a wind blows through a plain.Ben

What makes you think that something MUST be logical? Humans aren't logical in their everyday lives, so ... why would you expect anything to be logical?Science is an attempt to overcome our illogical nature, our illogical bodies that produce illogical minds. Most "logic" people use is simply trying to avoid cognitive dissonance. Some people's arguments actually turn out to be logical, usually due to great practice. Many arguments turn out to be illogical or based on false premises.Life is nothing like a physics test. Except maybe that when you get to the end of either one you wind up feeling crappy With that said, What is the purpose of putting religion under logical scrutiny? Even if illogical, religion does serve many purposes. There's at least one open thread if you want to discuss the purpose of religion. Regardless, all religion has to do is avoid causing cognitive dissonace in it's memebers. For believers, it doesn't have to be logical.I think religious and non-religious people alike make the mistake of not understanding what we really are. Both tend to be idealists in my experience.