Knowledge Tree
information-processing
Facts (42)
Sources
Non-physicalist Theories of Consciousness cambridge.org Dec 20, 2023 4 facts
perspectivePhysicalists, including Smart (1959) and Melnyk (2003), argue that since many functions associated with consciousness, such as information processing and intelligent behavior, have been physically explained, consciousness itself will eventually be fully explained in physical terms.
claimMany functionalists view the functions of consciousness as computational states or dispositions to process information, leading to the analogy that consciousness is software and the brain is hardware.
claimThe 'easy problems of consciousness' consist of explaining the functions associated with consciousness, such as the ability to register and process information about the environment and generating intelligent behavior.
claimSome physicalist theories define consciousness as a form of information processing, or software, implemented by the physical hardware of the brain.
AI Sessions #9: The Case Against AI Consciousness (with Anil Seth) conspicuouscognition.com Feb 17, 2026 3 facts
referencePeter Godfrey-Smith, in his book 'Metazoa', suggests that it is easier to conceive of a physical system like a living organism—characterized by billions of biochemical reactions and integrated electromagnetic fields—entailing a basic phenomenal state than it is to conceive of such a state arising from the abstractions of information processing.
perspectiveAnil Seth disputes the notion that computational functionalism is the only valid framework for understanding consciousness, noting that the term 'information processing' is frequently used to describe the brain without a clear, rigorous definition.
claimComputational functionalism is the view that consciousness is defined by the information processing performed by a system, and that if this computational description is abstracted and implemented in a different medium, it retains the properties of the original biological brain.
[PDF] Facing Up to the Problem of Consciousness - David Chalmers consc.net 3 facts
claimHuman thinking and perceiving involves a whir of information-processing.
claimDavid Chalmers observes that when humans think and perceive, there is a whir of information-processing occurring.
claimHuman thinking and perception involve a 'whir of information-processing' according to David Chalmers.
A Synergistic Workspace for Human Consciousness Revealed by ... elifesciences.org 3 facts
claimThe authors propose that while all workspace regions are involved in the integration stage of information processing, they are differentially involved in the gathering and broadcasting stages.
quoteThe authors state: “[…] unconsciousness is not necessarily a complete suppression of information processing but rather a network dysfunction that could create inhospitable conditions for global information exchange and broadcasting”.
claimThe authors propose that the information-processing stream within the human brain consists of three key stages: (i) gathering information from multiple distinct modules into a workspace, (ii) integration of the gathered information within the workspace, and (iii) global information broadcasting to the rest of the brain.
The Functionalist Case for Machine Consciousness: Evidence from ... lesswrong.com Jan 22, 2025 2 facts
claimUnder the functionalist view, conscious experience emerges from specific patterns of information processing, meaning any system implementing those patterns should have corresponding experiences regardless of its origin.
claimSkepticism toward machine consciousness often relies on assumptions that functionalism rejects, specifically that consciousness requires biological implementation, that there must be something 'extra' beyond information processing, or that pattern matching cannot produce genuine understanding.
Attention and Consciousness Overview | PDF | Priming (Psychology) scribd.com 2 facts
claimAttention involves active information processing, encompassing functions such as signal detection, vigilance, search, and selective attention.
claimAttention is defined as a cognitive process that allows individuals to focus on specific information from the environment while filtering out numerous other sights, sounds, and sensations.
Moving Forward on the Problem of Consciousness - David Chalmers consc.net 2 facts
claimDavid Chalmers clarifies that his use of Shannonian information is not an attempt to reduce mental states to information processing, but rather an attempt to identify a potential key to the physical basis of consciousness.
claimDavid Chalmers observes that most researchers currently focus on the 'macroscopic' regularities between information processing and experience, which he considers an appropriate approach.
The evolution of human-type consciousness – a by-product of ... frontiersin.org 2 facts
referenceMarois and Ivanoff (2005) published 'Capacity limits of information processing in the brain' in Trends in Cognitive Sciences, examining the constraints on human cognitive processing.
referenceApps and Garwicz (2005) published 'Anatomical and physiological foundations of cerebellar information processing' in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, volume 6, pages 297–311.
Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART) frontiersin.org 2 facts
referenceThe frontopolar prefrontal cortex (FPC) is associated with coordinating information processing between multiple brain regions, as referenced in Vincent et al. (2008).
claimIncreased neural system (NS) activity during goal-directed tasks is associated with excessive rumination and repetitive elaboration, which decreases the efficiency of the attentional system and general information processing capacity, potentially leading to negative health outcomes.
Theories and Methods of Consciousness biomedres.us Jan 29, 2024 2 facts
Evolutionary Psychology | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy iep.utm.edu 1 fact
quoteThe human brain is a physical system that was designed to process information.
Quantum Models of Consciousness from a Quantum Information ... arxiv.org Dec 20, 2024 1 fact
claimThe Orch OR theory posits that information processing in the brain occurs at the level of microtubules, which shape neurons and provide their unique architecture, though this theory conflicts with established principles of neuroscience.
Classification Schemes of Altered States of Consciousness - ORBi orbi.uliege.be 1 fact
referenceMonti, Lutkenhoff, Rubinov, Boveroux, Vanhaudenhuyse, Gosseries, Bruno, Noirhomme, Boly, and Laureys investigated the dynamic change of global and local information processing during propofol-induced loss and recovery of consciousness in a 2013 study published in PLOS Computational Biology.
Consciousness (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy/Fall 2025 ... plato.stanford.edu Jun 18, 2004 1 fact
claimThe dominance of behaviorism in psychology weakened in the 1960s with the rise of cognitive psychology, which emphasized information processing and the modeling of internal mental processes, as seen in the work of Ulric Neisser (1965) and Gardiner (1985).
Psychedelics, Sociality, and Human Evolution frontiersin.org 1 fact
claimTerence McKenna argued that the presence of psychedelics in the early human diet drove the rapid reorganization of the brain's information-processing capacities by catalyzing the emergence of self-reflective consciousness and language.
Evolutionary psychology - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 1 fact
claimCognition refers to internal representations of the world and internal information processing.
Psychology and Cognitive Science on Consciousness klinikong.com 1 fact
perspectiveCognitive psychology views consciousness as integral to understanding how people process information.
Attention and consciousness - SelfAwarePatterns selfawarepatterns.com Jun 12, 2022 1 fact
claimSelective attention allows for information to be included in processing early on and subsequently excluded later.
Hard problem of consciousness - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 1 fact
quoteDehaene stated: "Once our intuitions are educated by cognitive neuroscience and computer simulations, Chalmers' hard problem will evaporate. The hypothetical concept of qualia, pure mental experience, detached from any information-processing role, will be viewed as a peculiar idea of the prescientific era, much like vitalism... [Just as science dispatched vitalism] the science of consciousness will keep eating away at the hard problem of consciousness until it vanishes."
The Mechanisms of Psychedelic Visionary Experiences - Frontiers frontiersin.org Sep 27, 2017 1 fact
claimPsychedelic substances may have operated as environmental factors that selected for an enhanced capacity for specific forms of information processing in humans.
David Chalmers - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org 1 fact
claimDavid Chalmers argues that if qualia, such as the perceived color of objects, were to fade or disappear, the holder of the brain would notice the difference, which would alter the brain's information processing and lead to a contradiction.
Episode 2: The Hard Problem of Consciousness – David Chalmers ... futurepointdigital.substack.com Jul 24, 2025 1 fact
claimDavid Chalmers entertains the possibility that machines could be conscious if they instantiate the right kind of information processing, regardless of whether they are biological.
Consciousness and Cognitive Sciences journal-psychoanalysis.eu 1 fact
referenceWolf Singer published 'Synchronization of cortical activity and its putative role in information processing and learning' in the Annual Review of Physiology in 1993.
The Hard Problem of Consciousness | Springer Nature Link link.springer.com 1 fact
claimDavid Chalmers (2010) defines experience as the subjective aspect of consciousness that exists alongside the information processing occurring during thinking and perception.
Attention and Consciousness in Psychology | PDF - Scribd scribd.com 1 fact
claimAttention allows humans to actively process limited information from their senses and memories.
Quantum Mechanics And Consciousness: The Physics Of Mind quantumzeitgeist.com Apr 17, 2025 1 fact
perspectiveMost neuroscientists focus on classical physics explanations for consciousness, emphasizing neural networks and information processing rather than quantum mechanical models.
The function(s) of consciousness: an evolutionary perspective frontiersin.org Nov 25, 2024 1 fact
referenceMarchetti (2018) proposes that consciousness is a unique way of processing information, as published in Cognitive Processing.