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Consciousness as a global property of brain dynamic activity
D M Mateos1, R Wennberg2, R Guevara3
1Neuroscience and Mental Health Programme, Division of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Institute of Medical Science and Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
Physical Review. E
|January 20, 2018
Summary
Conscious awareness correlates with maximal brain entropy. Higher complexity in brain network configurations is observed during conscious states and subconscious processing like sleep, suggesting a global basis for cognition.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Physics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Understanding the neural basis of consciousness is a fundamental challenge in neuroscience.
- Investigating collective brain activity offers insights into the emergence of cognition and consciousness.
- Previous research has explored brain organization and its relation to cognitive states.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify general principles governing cellular collective activity related to conscious awareness.
- To find evidence for optimal brain organization supporting stimulus processing and cognition.
- To explore the relationship between brain entropy, complexity, and conscious states.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of brain recordings in conscious and unconscious states.
- Assessment of global entropic measures related to connected brain regions.
- Inspection of microscopic configurations of neural connections using complexity measures.
Main Results:
- Conscious states exhibit maximal global entropy.
- Higher complexity in brain network configurations is found in conscious states and during subconscious processing (e.g., sleep).
- Pathological unconscious states (seizures, coma) show microscopic complexity, while physiological unconscious states (sleep) retain high complexity with information processing.
Conclusions:
- Conscious awareness is associated with maximal global entropy.
- Microscopic network complexity is crucial for information processing in physiological unconscious states.
- Results support a global perspective on conscious awareness and cognition.
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