title: A natural science approach to consciousness.
abstract: We begin with premises about natural science, its fundamental protocols and its limitations. With those in mind, we construct alternative descriptive models of consciousness, each comprising a synthesis of recent literature in cognitive science. Presuming that consciousness arose through natural selection, we eliminate the subset of alternatives that lack selectable physical phenotypes, leaving the subset with limited free will (mostly in the form of free won't). We argue that membership in this subset implies a two-way exchange of energy between the conscious mental realm and the physical realm of the brain. We propose an analogy between the mental and physical phases of energy and the phases (e.g., gas/liquid) of matter, and a possible realization in the form of a generic resonator. As candidate undergirdings of such a system, we propose astroglial-pyramidal cell and electromagnetic-field models. Finally, we consider the problem of identification of the presence of consciousness in other beings or in machines.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California at Berkeley, CA 94720-1770, USA. lewis@eecs.berkeley.edu
authors.forename: Edwin R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Lewis
authors.forename: Ronald J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Macgregor
mesh_terms: D001703:Biophysics; D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003243:Consciousness / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D019222:Mind-Body Relations, Metaphysical / Q000502:physiology*; D008959:Models, Neurological