Includes bibliographical references and index.

Ghosts, machines, and the nature of light -- Physicalism, creativity, and heroism -- Naturalism and nature : the ecology of physicalism -- Reason, science, and the mind as a physical brain -- Affirming the creative and the heroic -- Body, spirit, and the value of creation -- A biblical defense of reason and science -- The integrated person.

"What does it mean to be human? Some naturalists believe that the human mind can be reduced to brain biology, suggesting that we are no more than complex biochemical machines. Computer scientist Matthew Dickerson critiques a physicalist/naturalist view of human persons and defends theistic accounts of human nature. He responds to the widespread assertion that human consciousness is nothing more than "software" that can one day be downloaded into supercomputers. Drawing on C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, Dickerson gets at the heart of human nature itself, highlighting a far richer vision of personhood, creativity, and love. This thought-provoking book on a timely topic will appeal to those interested in science and religion, philosophy, and technology; readers of the materialist New Atheists; and anyone who simply cares what it means to be human" -- Publisher description.