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Consciousness and Cognition: A Personal Journey from Function to Phenomenology

Narayanan Srinivasan

The MIT Press eBooks December 16, 2025 DOI: 10.7551/mitpress/14600.003.0025 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed
Topics Philosophy of mind
Keywords Phenomenology philosophy Consciousness Function biology Epistemology Psychoanalysis Cognitive science
Key points Argues that a hierarchical control-system view of control and prediction can enable understanding of consciousness, self, and agency.

Abstract

measures like accuracy and reaction time and move toward reports about experience that are simple but not necessarily objectively verifiable as accurate.I will discuss studies demonstrating the effect of attention on visual awareness and how meditation practice could influence our perceptual experience.Fi nally, I will discuss the importance of control and prediction and how a hierarchical control-system view could enable us to understand consciousness, self, and agency.