He didn't seem talking about genomics or epigenomics, though.
> Cells are intelligent.
Define intelligent. I don't see a mechanistic response unit, no matter how sophisticated, as intelligent.
> Inflammation in the brain is linked to many mood disorders.
That is, however, extremely different from starting to like classical music because your donor was a violinist. He wasn't talking about mood disorders, but specific preferences.
Upon re-reading the organ transplant section, you're right that he says some crazy stuff. However, what he says should be experimentally testable, which means it's a valid hypothesis. I don't think the evidence he provided is anywhere near sufficient to support his claim though.
> I don't see a mechanistic response unit, no matter how sophisticated, as intelligent.
Can you provide an example of an "intelligent" system that is definitely not a "mechanistic response unit"?
> He didn't seem talking about genomics or epigenomics, though
Proteins can hold memory too. Not as stable as DNA except maybe for amyloid fibers like those in prions. But it's not out of the question.
> Can you provide an example of an "intelligent" system that is definitely not a "mechanistic response unit"?
Sure, intelligent systems do by definition have a mechanistically responsive element at its base; they're made of matter, after all. However, that doesn't mean that every system which is able to respond to changes in its environment is ipso facto intelligent.
The neurons in the brain are not what makes a brain intelligent. It's the emergent meta-structures formed by neurons which allow us to think the way we think.
He didn't seem talking about genomics or epigenomics, though.
> Cells are intelligent.
Define intelligent. I don't see a mechanistic response unit, no matter how sophisticated, as intelligent.
> Inflammation in the brain is linked to many mood disorders.
That is, however, extremely different from starting to like classical music because your donor was a violinist. He wasn't talking about mood disorders, but specific preferences.