The Neuro-Computational Origin of Disposition: Unconsciousness as Lifelong Prior Overfitting and Consciousness as Active Inference
A formal computational framework redefines the unconscious as an active, overfitted generative model of an individual's world, rather than a passive reservoir. Lifelong minimization of variational free energy leads to over-specialization of internal model parameters to the specific statistical regularities of one's sensory history. This overfitting creates a stable, low-entropy informational manifold that determines an individual's probabilistic disposition to perceive and act. Consciousness is characterized as the recursive, energy-consuming process of active inference, where the brain dynamically minimizes prediction error between this overfitted prior model and real-time sensory data. The framework synthesizes theoretical neuroscience, artificial intelligence, and non-equilibrium thermodynamics to derive a mathematical model for a Consciousness Potential.