Two Levels of Integrated Information Theory: From Autonomous Systems to Conscious Life.
Entropy (Basel, Switzerland) September 5, 2024 Zenan Ruan, Hengwei Li
Integrated Information Theory (IIT) is a prominent candidate for a theory of consciousness, but it has faced criticism for failing to meet expectations. This paper argues that IIT operates on two levels: a second level that claims to anchor consciousness directly, and a first level that deals with autonomous systems or systems with critical complexity. The gap between these levels, along with IIT's panpsychist tendency, underlies the criticisms. The authors contend that IIT's problems are not pseudoscientific and that by adding necessary elements to combine the two levels, IIT can move toward a theory of consciousness that provides necessary and sufficient interpretations.