Tag: Consciousness

Daniel Wolpert: The real reason for brains

I came across this old TED talk today and decided to share it because it's relevant to the previous post on consciousness and simulations.  Daniel Wolpert's talk doesn't address consciousness specifically, only the overall role of the simulations, but it's still a fascinating exploration of what we're doing when our attention is focused on a … Continue reading Daniel Wolpert: The real reason for brains →

Is consciousness a simulation engine, a prediction machine?

Back in September (which now seems like a million years ago), I did a series of posts on consciousness inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt’s recent book, ‘The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience‘.  In that series, I explored consciousness as a system modeling its environment and itself as a guide to … Continue reading Is consciousness a simulation engine, a prediction machine? →

The problems with philosophical zombies

In any online conversation about consciousness, sooner or later someone is going to bring up philosophical zombies as an argument for consciousness being non-physical, or at least some portion of it.  The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy introduces the p-zombie concept as follows: Zombies in philosophy are imaginary creatures designed to illuminate problems about consciousness and its relation … Continue reading The problems with philosophical zombies →

The range of conscious systems and the hard problem

This is the fifth and final post in a series inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt's new book, 'The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience'.  The previous posts were: What counts as consciousness? Predators and the rise of sensory consciousness Types of sensory consciousness The neural mechanics of sensory consciousness In the … Continue reading The range of conscious systems and the hard problem →

The neural mechanics of sensory consciousness

This is the fourth in a series of posts inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt's new book, 'The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience'.  The first three were: What counts as consciousness? Predators and rise of sensory consciousness Types of sensory consciousness So, at this point in the series, we've talked about what … Continue reading The neural mechanics of sensory consciousness →

Types of sensory consciousness

This is the third in a series of posts inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt's new book, 'The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience'.  The first two were: What counts as consciousness? Predators and rise of sensory consciousness With this post, we're going to get into the different types of sensory … Continue reading Types of sensory consciousness →

Predators and the rise of sensory consciousness

This is the second post in a series inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt's new book, 'The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience'. The first post in the series was: What counts as consciousness? Life appears to have gotten started fairly early in Earth's history.  The oldest known fossils are now … Continue reading Predators and the rise of sensory consciousness →

What counts as consciousness?

One of the things I get reminded of every few years, is that difficult determinations often look clearer when you consider them in a wider scope.  Years ago, when I was trying to figure out whether conservative or progressive political policies were better, I discovered that widening my investigation to history helped immensely, and widening even further … Continue reading What counts as consciousness? →

Damasio’s theory of consciousness

Antonio Damasio is a neuroscientist and neurologist who has published a number of theories about how the brain and mind work.  Unlike many theories of mind, his are thoroughly grounded in neuroanatomy. Central to Damasio's theory of consciousness is the idea of biological value, that which helps in preserving homeostasis, which of course aids in … Continue reading Damasio’s theory of consciousness →