Dissolving the Combination Problem: Second-Order Distinction and the Genesis of New Subjects
Open MIND July 16, 2026 Sepehr Shokouhi
Panpsychism avoids the puzzle of how consciousness emerges from non-conscious matter by positing that experience is fundamental, but it faces the combination problem: how micro-experiences combine into a unified macro-experience. This paper argues that relation itself generates being: when two independent foci of experience intersect under specific conditions, a new focus with its own intrinsic aspect arises without dissolving the prior components. Three criteria—lock of the collapse direction, independence with path memory, and preservation of boundary phase-alignment—distinguish this genesis from mere addition or full fusion. The framework generates testable predictions and suggests the combination problem admits a principled dissolution rather than a new answer.