Consciousness versus states of being conscious
Ernst Pöppel
Behavioral and Brain Sciences March 1, 1997 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x97300053 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Proposes that consciousness is defined by temporal integration windows of approximately 3 seconds, built from 30-millisecond atemporal states, and that this framework can map onto Block's P-consciousness and A-consciousness. |
Abstract
States of being conscious (S) can be defined on the basis of temporal information processing. A high-frequency mechanism provides atemporal system states with periods of approximately 30 msec to implement the functional connection of distributed activities allowing the construction of primordial events; a low frequency mechanism characterized by automatic temporal integration sets up temporal windows with approximately 3 seconds duration. This integration mechanism can be used to define S. P-consciousness and A-consciousness as conceived of by Block can be mapped onto these neuronal mechanisms.