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Related Experiment Videos

Consciousness.

J R Searle1

  • 1Department of Philosophy, University of California, Berkeley 94720-2390, USA. searle@cogsci.berkeley.edu

Annual Review of Neuroscience
|June 9, 2000
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Consciousness is a biological phenomenon, investigable through neurobiology. Understanding unified subjective experience requires a unified field model over a building block approach for objective scientific study.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Philosophy of Mind
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Historically, consciousness was deemed unsuitable for scientific study due to philosophical misconceptions about subjectivity.
  • The view of consciousness as a purely subjective phenomenon hindered objective scientific investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To establish consciousness as a legitimate topic for neurobiological investigation.
  • To propose a framework for understanding the subjective nature of consciousness within an objective scientific paradigm.
  • To compare and contrast the 'building block' and 'unified field' models of consciousness.

Main Methods:

  • Neurobiological investigation of consciousness as a biological phenomenon.
  • Philosophical analysis to overcome dualistic thinking (mind-body distinction).

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  • Discussion and comparison of the 'building block' and 'unified field' theories of consciousness.

    • Main Results:

    • Consciousness is argued to be a biological phenomenon caused by and realized in brain structures.
    • The subjective, first-person ontology of consciousness does not preclude objective scientific study.
    • The unified field model is preferred over the building block model for explaining the unified nature of conscious states.

    Conclusions:

    • Consciousness can be scientifically investigated using neurobiological methods.
    • A unified field approach is more effective for explaining the integrated nature of subjective experience.
    • Overcoming philosophical barriers is crucial for advancing the science of consciousness.