Describing and explaining consciousness
Neuroscience of Consciousness April 13, 2023 DOI: 10.1093/nc/niad009 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that consciousness can be explained as a biological feature by first defining its functional role and then outlining its evolutionary trajectory. |
Abstract
AbstractConsciousness is a property of advanced brains and as such a biological feature. Explaining biological features is somewhat different from explaining physical phenomena; in the former case, the key is to first define its functional role (the reason why it was selected) and then to outline the evolutionary trajectory leading to its presence. In the case of consciousness, there are reasonable models for both. Further research is required to substantiate these models, but they offer, arguably, the best explanatory framework.