> Occam's razor = the theory with the fewest parameters should be preferred, or often interpreted as the simplest theory.
> Do you think that humans universally or even have historically interpreted physicalism as a simpler theory than a non-materialist one? I don't think so
Backtracking a bit from that little word "theory", it's foremost about being able to formulate predictions about the real world. So, designing a suspension bridge over there, how much steel do use per cable? 1 ton? 2 tons? 42? Use the eight consciousnesses, sure, but get the answer, build the bridge, and be the first one to cross it.
If you don't have two competing theories that offer a prediction, there is nothing to apply the Occam's razor to.
A theory which is a mix of physics (for steel bridges, etc.) and Buddhism (for this or that domain) does work for many predictions. It is also inherently much more complex than "only use physics".
I think you are getting confused between the word theory and the word model, which are often interchanged in physics unfortunately.
A "model" is predictive, but a "theory" explains. A theory of consciousness has no need to predict the future. A model of consciousness would. This word has just been mixed up a lot in science. The reason is that theories in physics are almost always also predictive models. However, this is not usually explicitly the case in philosophy.
> A theory of consciousness has no need to predict the future.
If you don't feel the need to predict anything about consciousness in the real world, I'd say I won't be interested in such a "theory" (or "explanation"). But glad to see your take on the definition of the term.
Going back to Occam's razor, if you only apply it to get the simplest map (in some sense of "the simplest"), and abandon verifying whether it predicts the territory or not, it seems a blank map always wins.
> Do you think that humans universally or even have historically interpreted physicalism as a simpler theory than a non-materialist one? I don't think so
Backtracking a bit from that little word "theory", it's foremost about being able to formulate predictions about the real world. So, designing a suspension bridge over there, how much steel do use per cable? 1 ton? 2 tons? 42? Use the eight consciousnesses, sure, but get the answer, build the bridge, and be the first one to cross it.
If you don't have two competing theories that offer a prediction, there is nothing to apply the Occam's razor to.
A theory which is a mix of physics (for steel bridges, etc.) and Buddhism (for this or that domain) does work for many predictions. It is also inherently much more complex than "only use physics".