These century-old arguments bring me to the conceptual framework of the integrated information theory (IIT) of psychiatrist and neuroscientist Giulio Tononi of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. It postulates that conscious experience is a fundamental aspect of reality and is identical to a particular type of information—integrated information. Consciousness depends on a physical substrate but is … Continue reading Is Consciousness Universal?: Scientific American
Tag: Michael Graziano
Consciousness and the Social Brain: A review
What is consciousness? What is the inner experience that we all feel we have? Is it an illusion or an ontological reality? Michael Graziano thinks it is a reality, and he thinks he has found a scientific theory for it, which he describes in his book: 'Consciousness and the Social Brain'. The quest for a … Continue reading Consciousness and the Social Brain: A review
Attention happens
I'm currently reading Michael Graziano's book 'Consciousness and the Social Brain', which I hope to give a review of sometime soon. In the book, he makes a distinction between attention and awareness. Attention is something that happens when one of the competing collections of signals in the brain wins, and awareness is data in the … Continue reading Attention happens
Virtual afterlives will transform humanity – Michael Graziano – Aeon
Imagine a future in which your mind never dies. When your body begins to fail, a machine scans your brain in enough detail to capture its unique wiring. A computer system uses that data to simulate your brain. It won’t need to replicate every last detail. Like the phonograph, it will strip away the irrelevant … Continue reading Virtual afterlives will transform humanity – Michael Graziano – Aeon
Michael Graziano: The Spirit Constructed in the Brain
I perceive consciousness in myself. My brain constructs a perceptual model of a mind that thinks this and that, feels this and that and is aware of this and that; the mind is attributed to my own location. That model provides an organized, coherent way for me to understand myself -- to predict and help … Continue reading Michael Graziano: The Spirit Constructed in the Brain