ON CONSCIOUSNESS (el. knyga) (skaityta knyga) | Bernard J. Baars | knygos.lt

Aprašymas

Global Workspace Theory (GWT) began with this question: "How does a serial, integrated and very limited stream of consciousness emerge from a nervous system that is mostly unconscious, distributed, parallel and of enormous capacity?"

GWT provides one useful simplifying framework for the role of conscious and unconscious experiences in the functioning of the brain. A set of explicit assumptions that can be tested, as many of them have been. These updated works, from the INNS 2019 Hermann von Helmholtz Life Contribution Award recipient, form a coherent effort to organize a large and growing body of scientific evidence about conscious brains.

Global Workspace Theory from soup to nuts.

Witness some of the field's most exciting breakthroughs that illuminate the questions - What difference does consciousness make? What are its properties? What role does it play in the nervous system? How do conscious brain functions differ from unconscious ones? Unfolding in 4 sections spanning 1988 - 2013, Part III is the updated edition of Baars' acclaimed A Cognitive Theory of Consciousness, of which DanielDennett described as

"A clear-eyed, open-minded analysis of the problems of consciousness, and a wide-ranging synthesis of a variety of approaches. For those who want to join the race to model consciousness, this is the starting line."

Empirical progress since the 1980s has been spectacular. It therefore seems timely to republish successive stages of evidence & theory of the brain's global workspace - covering 30 years during which consciousness re-emerged from decades of neglect. In traditional scientific fashion, our basic evidence remains stable while ideas continue to evolve.

How can we understand the evidence?

The best answer today is a 'global workspace architecture,' first developed by cognitive modeling groups led by Alan Newell and Herbert A. Simon. The term "global workspace" comes from Artificial Intelligence, where it refers to a fleeting memory domain that allows for cooperative problem-solving by large collections of specialized programs. Global Workspace Theory (GWT) therefore assumes that the brain can be viewed as a "society of mind."

Global Workspace (GW) theory provides the most useful framework to date for our rapidly accumulating body of evidence. It is consistent with our current knowledge, and can be enriched to include other aspects of human experience.

• Stan Franklin and his co-workers have built on GWT to sketch out a more general theory of cognition - LIDA: Cognitive Architecture's Computational Implementation of GWT.
• Stanislas Dehaene and Jean-Pierre Changeux in Paris developed experimentally testable models, making further testable claims about the brain basis of visual consciousness - The Dehaene-Changeux Model (DCM): Global Neuronal Workspace is Part of GWT.

Global Workspace Dynamics (GWD) is the most current version of GWT - attempting to account for complexities of the living brain. These updated works trace the beginnings of GWT/GWD through the continued rise of brain evidence and psychological understanding.

Nobel Laureate in Physics, Brian D. Josephson, describes Baars' related book as

"An impressive tour, centered around the question of what we might be able to discover scientifically regarding the role played by conscious experience in the functioning of the mind."

Baars' paradigm changing, long lasting influence and impact in perception belongs on bookshelves of every reader serious about understanding mind, brain, and behavior.