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Re: What is consciousness? » sackhoullier

Posted by Eddie Sylvano on November 24, 2003, at 11:59:12

In reply to Re: What is consciousness?, posted by sackhoullier on November 21, 2003, at 4:56:49

> I’ve read a couple of decent articles about consciousness lately – some interesting theory was that it is a layer that we put on top of what we observe in order to produce an understanding and memory
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That's the gist of much of the literature I've read. To demystify things further, a growing body of research suggests that there isn't really such a thing as conscious will, which is the biggest sticking point in explaining consciousness (causation). We operate almost entirely from subconsciousness (hence the ability to drive without remembering), with consciousness serving to create reactions to situations we haven't encountered before, or tweak our reaction to similar experiences. Once we've learned something, it becomes automatic.
Studies from stroke victims point to the idea that our conscious thoughts are essentially confabulations (explainations after the fact) for our actions, which typically incorporate relevant information (they sound reasonable), but will make do with whatever information they can, if need be. Our awareness isn't the author of our behavior, but rather an observer who feels responsible for it. Hence, change is hard because we're always fighting for control of a system that isn't really under our control, yet we deeply feel is. We're neurotic by design.


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URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031121/msgs/283213.html