In his post on the Intrinsic Perspective, Dr. Erik Hoel argues, in response to an earlier letter signed by 124 authors regarding the integrated information theory (IIT) of consciousness, that the media have not exaggerated the empirical support for IIT. He claims that the letter "comes from some alternative reality in which IIT is taken as gospel, all the media celebrate it". The present...
The media, including news articles in both Nature and Science, have recently celebrated the Integrated Information Theory (IIT) as a ‘leading’ and empirically tested theory of consciousness. We are writing as researchers with some relevant expertise to express our concerns.
The scientific study of consciousness emerged as an organized field of research only a few decades ago. As empirical results have begun to enhance our understanding of consciousness, it is important to find out whether other factors, such as funding for consciousness research and status of consciousness scientists, provide a suitable environment for the field to grow and develop sustainably. We...
Wai Kan Andy Yeung, Cody A Cushing, Alan L. F. Lee
preprint
Consciousness science faces both opportunities and challenges as it has been maturing as a discipline of science in recent years. Some popular theories of consciousness have been described as unfalsifiable and some as“overpromoted” in the media. To objectively evaluate the state of consciousness science as a field, we analyzed the bibliometric data for five major theories of consciousness,...