Question by SpongeRobert: Consciousness?
OK, so if you define consciousness to be the mind’s awareness of itself, how did it evolve? At what point did the mind learn to not only process information, but interpret it? Do you think it’s possible for computers to achieve this level of intelligence?
There’s a difference between instinct and reason, though.
Best answer:
Answer by jkk k
i have much much much more faith in computers gaining consciousness than anyone here on philosophy (that take it seriously) having any sort of intelligence!
so computers are already light years ahead of serious ‘philosophers’! oooooohhh…scary!
What do you think? Answer below!
It evolved right along with the organism. Even organism that evidence no other sign of awareness are aware enough to know food and grab it. Robots have already achieved limited awareness. Some even plug themselves in when their power levels drop to a minimum.
Consciousness has received and continues to receive a lot of attention from a variety of different disciplines. Our understanding of consciousness has begun to change drastically in the last several years with the use of new brain imaging technologies.
One of the most important developments in consciousness research is the realization that consciousness is actually an observer of current mental events, rather than the director of mental events. I think of it like a sportscaster providing the play by play of a baseball game. The sportscaster observes whats happening and provides you with a description of what’s going on. (This view has been confirmed experimentally.)
IMHO consciousness and its emergence is tied to the development of language. Given what I’ve read recently I suspect that it’s possible that they both emerged between 40,000 and 60,000 years ago.
Jeff Hawkins defines intelligence as the ability to predict what’s going to happen next. His book “On Intelligence” while controversial is quite enlightening. You might also want to check out the website “http://www.onintelligence.org”.
Will computers ever achieve consciousness? Absolutely! When? It depends on the definition of consciousness.
Consciousness means: Awareness, and Mindfulness{Encyclopedia Britannica 2007′
Deluxe Edittion) !
There is an Excellent book I just finished reading on this very subject you are asking, and talking about. The book is called, ” The Beginner’s Guide to Insight Meditation ” By:
Arinna Weisman and Jean Smith. Costed me 7.00 on amazon.com saving $8.00
The human mind is very capable of achieving the level of computers, to receive, store and process information. The book covers this, and so……..much, much more, in detail. Great book.
And no, I am not the author, but enjoyed reading this book, and do practice meditation to increase Cognitive skills and to generate patience in my life. Excellent Question !!
I think you are speaking more of being sentient. We are aware of ourselves and the world around us. We learn by observing and then doing. This is an ongoing process. I expect to learn until I die and then go on to the next plane of being. Whatever that is. Artificial intelligence is already with us and it will evolve too.
This “awareness” was never born so can never die. This is the basic nature of everything. And I do mean everything. This is the I AM THAT I AM in the bible. This is the truth of life or being.