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Relations (1)
cross_type 4.17 — strongly supporting 17 facts
David Chalmers is a central figure in the study of the combination problem, having published foundational work on the topic [1] and developed a taxonomy to categorize its various difficulties {fact:2, fact:3}. He identifies the combination problem as the primary obstacle to panpsychism [2] and has spent decades analyzing its implications for the hard problem of consciousness {fact:8, fact:17}.
Facts (17)
Sources
The Hard Problem of Consciousness | Springer Nature Link link.springer.com 11 facts
quoteDavid Chalmers formulated the combination problem as follows: "[...] how do microexperiences combine to yield macro-experiences? It is at least very hard to see how a number of separate experiences had by separate entities could combine to yield a distinct experience had by a composite entity. It is especially hard to see how they could combine to yield the distinctive kind of macroexperience that we find in our own case."
accountDavid Chalmers spent the period between 2002 and 2016 attempting to solve the combination problem without success, eventually leaving the solution to others.
claimDavid Chalmers holds that the combination problem is the only serious obstacle to solving the hard problem of consciousness.
perspectiveThe author argues that if David Chalmers and his followers are correct that panpsychism avoids the serious problems faced by monist materialism, interactionism, and epiphenomenalism, then further investment in solving the combination problem is warranted.
referenceAccording to David Chalmers (2016b), the combination problem consists of three main branches: the subject combination problem, the quality combination problem, and a third branch.
claimDavid Chalmers observes that the combination problem and its subproblems apply to all versions of constitutive panpsychism, including panprotophenomenal interpretations.
referenceDavid Chalmers published 'The combination problem for panpsychism' in 2016 in the book 'Panpsychism', edited by G. Bruntrup and L. Jaskolla and published by Oxford University Press.
claimDavid Chalmers has spent considerable effort discussing the combination problem due to its central role in the debate on the hard problem of consciousness.
claimDavid Chalmers defines the combination problem as the lack of any logical a priori necessity of consciousness entailed by micro-/protophenomenal properties.
quoteDavid Chalmers describes the difficulty of solving the combination problem after three decades of work as "a little like trying to juggle seven balls in the air with both hands tied behind one’s back".
claimDavid Chalmers concludes that none of the proposed solutions to the subproblems of the combination problem can be regarded as definitively solved.
Moving Forward on the Problem of Consciousness - David Chalmers consc.net 4 facts
claimDavid Chalmers notes that the 'combination problem' could be bypassed by suggesting that complex experiences arise autonomously rather than being constituted by micro-experiences, though this approach threatens to lead to epiphenomenalism.
perspectiveDavid Chalmers considers Russellian monism to be the most attractive and integrated view of consciousness, provided that the 'combination problem' can be solved.
claimDavid Chalmers identifies the 'combination problem' (also known as the 'constitution problem') as the most difficult challenge in panpsychism, defined as the problem of how low-level proto-experiential properties constitute complex, unified conscious experiences.
claimDavid Chalmers observes that unless one adopts an interactionist framework like that proposed by Stapp, which posits fundamental causation at a high level, integrating experience into the causal order inevitably leads to the 'combination problem'.
Panpsychism - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy plato.stanford.edu 1 fact
referenceDavid Chalmers' 2016 taxonomy of the combination problem identifies three dimensions of difficulty: difficulties relating to subject combination (the subject-summing problem), difficulties relating to quality combination (the palette problem), and difficulties relating to combination of structure (the structural mismatch problem and the grain problem).
Panpsychism - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 1 fact
perspectiveDavid Chalmers argues that panprotopsychism faces difficulty with the combination problem, describing the view as 'ad hoc' and noting that it diminishes the parsimony that originally made the theory interesting.