The consciousness circuit - an approach to the hard problem.

A theoretical model of consciousness is presented, building on earlier work presented at a 2006 neuroscience congress. The model proposes that visual consciousness arises from interactions between cortical areas via feedforward sweep, recurrent, and wide-spread recurrent processes, linked to light entering the eyes. A reciprocal interaction model describes how the eye responds to light by regulating sleep-wake states through EEG synchronization, controlled by thalamic-cortical activity from brainstem nuclei. This yields an orthogonal graph representing all states of human consciousness, including emotional, unconscious, dreaming, and pre-conscious states, allowing observation without subjective experience. The Quantum Orch OR Model is applied to the graph, proposing that phenomenal conscious vision depends on quantum computation in microtubules, with the vertical axis representing a cholinergic-aminergic scale that triggers quantum mechanisms.

Study at a glance

Abstract

This paper is the continuation of a study about Consciousness as a resulting function between attention and luminosity, presented at the Neuroscience International Congress, which was held in the city of Natal, in Brazil, in 2006. There it was described how visual Consciousness is generated by the interaction of the cortical area activity through FFS (Feedforward Sweep Processes), RP (Recurrent Processes) and WSRP (Wide Spread Recurrent Processes), and its relationship with the luminosity that hits the eyes. We have applied the reciprocal interaction model, which says that the eye reacts to luminosity through the regulation of sleep-awake states through EEG wave synchronization; this, in turn, is regulated by the thalamic cortical neural activity from the brainstem monoaminergic and cholinergic nuclei.Such an understanding has led us to construct a consciousness model which can be represented by an orthogonal graph. Through this model, we can represent all states of human consciousness (emotional consciousness, unconsciousness states, dreaming states, awareness states, pre-consciousness states and others) making it possible, in theory, to construct a Consciousness parameter which yields to the understanding of consciousness state observation without a subjective approach to experience.We have also applied on this orthogonal graph the Quantum Orch OR Model. According to it, subjective, phenomenal conscious vision depends on quantum computation in microtubules where the quantum is the smallest quantity of radiant energy, in a scale in which matter and energy interact. This model helps us to build the vertical axe of the consciousness orthogonal graph, a cholinergic-aminergic scale, in which activation triggers the quantum mechanism relevant to the consciousness phenomenon.