Subjective Consciousness: What am I?
The frontiers collection 2019 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-03633-1_11 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Consciousness Feeling Perception Formality Cognitive science Context archaeology Cognition Unconscious mind Cognitive psychology Epistemology Psychoanalysis |
| Citations | 6 |
| Key points | Argues that consciousness is a fact but not yet accommodated into science; proposes that perceptions are constructed simulations, memories are constructed, the self is a cognitive effort, and consciousness rationalizes subconscious decisions retrospectively. Contends that free will is questionable based on experiments. |
Abstract
Consciousness is a fact. In this very moment your eyes are scanning these words and your mind is creating understanding of and context for the contents utilizing memory. However, astonishingly, we don’t know how to accommodate consciousness into our scientific view of the world. Until quite recently, the nation of consciousness was taboo for scientists and philosophers alike. Today, a central problem is: How does the feeling of subjective experienceSubjective experience emerge from neural activity? As a corollary: How does the ethereal mind interact with the physical world? Worldphysical Insights from neuroscienceNeuroscience have uncovered that our perceptions of reality are not faithful representations, but constructed virtual reality simulationsSimulations. Memories are also constructed and not retrieved. The sense of self is a result of a complex cognitive effort. The role of our consciousness is to narrate and rationalize the decisions emerging from the subconsciousSubconscious brainBrain, in retrospect. Context and expectations influence and shape perceptions and experiencesExperiences. The human mindHuman mind exhibits countless irrational behaviors—cognitive biasesCognitive biases abound. The mind can also suffer from a wide array of pathologies. Finally, free will is a very controversial topic, as experimentsExperiments question its reality. Level of mathematical formality: not applicable.