Consciousness Writing Assignment- Oscar Cambra
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School
Community College of Denver *
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Course
1011
Subject
Philosophy
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
Pages
3
Uploaded by BrigadierLemurPerson450
Cambra 1
Oscar Cambra
PHI1011X01
Travis Parkhurst
Oct 7 2023
Consciousness Writing Assignment
1.
Consciousness is the state of being aware of one's thoughts, sensations, emotions, and
the external world. As David Chalmers once said, “
We all have our own inner movie, you and
you and you. There's nothing we know about more directly. At least, I know about my
consciousness directly. I can't be certain that you guys are conscious” (Hurst).
While many
of us know what we do ourselves and know that we are thinking what we are thinking, nobody
can actually know if others are thinking, or even real. Consciousness relates to Metaphysics as it
dives into fundamental questions about the nature of reality and the mind. Metaphysics
explores topics such as the relationship between physical and mental aspects of existence, the
nature of consciousness itself, and the potential existence of a higher consciousness beyond the
physical dimension that we all know.
2.
The "easy problem" of consciousness involves understanding how the brain processes
information, performs cognitive functions, and how they connect to our behavior. It seeks to
uncover the mechanisms that are caused by our many neurons behind perception, memory,
and language, which are considered scientifically controllable challenges. This is opposed to the
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"hard problem" of consciousness, proposed by philosopher David Chalmers. His concern is the
subjective experience of consciousness or "qualia." It asks why and how certain physical
processes in the brain give rise to the inner, first-person experience of colors, tastes, emotions,
and more. The hard problem remains difficult because it questions whether objective,
third-person science can fully explain the existence of subjective, first-person experiences.
3.
With the three theories mentioned by Chalmers, Panpsychism offers a unique and an
interesting approach to addressing the topic of consciousness. Panpsychism implies that
consciousness is a fundamental ‘property’ of the universe. It is presented at all levels of matter,
not just associated with complex brains. This theory says that even the smallest particles, like
electrons, possess some form of elemental consciousness. Some reasons that I think
Panpsychism as a great theory for the hard problem of consciousness would be that it fills in the
gap between the physical and the mental by suggesting that consciousness is a fundamental
aspect of reality. It doesn't need consciousness to come up only from complex matter. Also, It
provides a possible solution to the "combination problem" that is associated with theories like
emergence or materialism. The combination problem helps to ask how individual conscious
elements combine to form very complicated conscious experiences. Another reason is that
Panpsychism encourages a more holistic view of the universe, where consciousness isn't limited
to humans or animals but is a very universal feature of existence. Lastly, although Panpsychism
may seem unusual, it helps to give a framework for exploring the relationship between the
physical world and subjective experience, which has remained a philosophical challenge among
the philosophy community.
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References:
How do you explain consciousness?
(2014).
David Chalmers: How do you explain consciousness?
| TED Talk
. Retrieved October 8, 2023, from
https://www.ted.com/talks/david_chalmers_how_do_you_explain_consciousness/trans
cript.
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