Posted: Sep 07, 2018 12:24 pm
by GrahamH
SpeedOfSound wrote:
GrahamH wrote:
SpeedOfSound wrote:
GrahamH wrote:SOS, have you read Graziano (Consciousness and the social brain, "attention schema theory") ? I've been meaning to start a thread on that because it seems spot on to me.

I actually have two copies of that book. Have read it. Will be reading it again.


I thought you would have it on your bookshelf. How do you see it as answer to the non-thingness of consciousness?
In that respect it contrasts with IIT and other 'process' theories.


If memory serves me he has one good piece. But just another piece of the whole. A fine theory about one part of what our cognition is on whole. I have always been a theory-slut and I am beginning to understand why. Many theories are good and probably have some or a lot of truth to them. But there is no single thing that consumes all of so-called conscious content unless you want to say the entire brain and environment IS consciousness.

I am suggesting that we consider pushing back on the use of the word consciousness and break it into some finer parts. I think we actually want to talk about attention and awareness.


As I read it he gets at the core of "what consciousness is", relating it to a known physical phenomena (attention). Indeed he avoids that trap that most theories seem to fall into (e.g. IIT) of "the entire brain and environment IS consciousness".