by Bernard J. Baars | Jan 9, 2020 | Conscious Experiences, Cortex and Consciousness
A large and coherent body of evidence now shows that cortex and its resonant satellite, the thalamus, jointly constitute the brain basis of conscious experiences. However, the states of waking, sleep and REM dreaming are switched on and off by basal brain nuclei that...
by Bernard J. Baars | Oct 22, 2019 | Conscious Experiences, Feelings of knowing
Qualitative consciousness is sensory: Explicit consciousness is conceptual The philosopher Ned Block makes a distinction between qualitative (sensory) consciousness and explicit propositions, which are not clearly experienced as having sensory qualities. These include...
by Bernard J. Baars | Oct 16, 2019 | conscious brain, Cortex and Consciousness, mindbrain
While conscious experience has been discussed throughout history, the late 19th century saw a rise in physicalistic reductionism, which, in its more extreme forms, declared “consciousness” and kindred terms to be unscientific. In the 1920s B.F. Skinner defined the...
by Bernard J. Baars | Jan 7, 2019 | Cortex and Consciousness, mindbrain
“What is the silliest claim ever made? The competition is fierce, but I think the answer is easy. Some people have denied the existence of consciousness: conscious experience, the subjective character of experience, the “what-it-is-like” of experience.” —...
by Bernard J. Baars | Jan 6, 2019 | Cortex and Consciousness
The cover image of my updated works On Consciousness: Science & Subjectivity shows five cortico-thalamic projection systems, each one operating in similar ways, and each one projecting to different regions of cortex. Steriade (2006) has emphasized that the...
by Bernard J. Baars | Jan 5, 2019 | conscious brain, Cortex and Consciousness, mindbrain, Unconscious Processes
An invitation to understand the mindbrain Cortex is the organ of mind. The double-decker cortex, both the outer neocortex and the inner paleocortex, were proposed to be the “organ of mind,” as pioneering neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield wrote, based on 1,200 open...
