Table of Contents
Dedication v
Preface vii
Contents xi
List of Tables xvii
List of Figures xix
Chapter 1 Preamble 1
1.1 Reading this book: The quick way 9
Chapter 2 Introduction 11
2.1 Descriplion(what) vs. explanation(why) 17
Chapter 3 Consciousness 19
3.1 The modern scientific perspective on consciousness 19
3.2 Objectivity and the First-person perspective (1PP) 28
3.3 The science of consciousness 31
3.4 Other consciousness aspects 35
3.4.1 Unconscious processing, skills and novelty 35
3.4.2 Attention 35
3.4.3 Higher order consciousness 36
3.4.4 The 'self' 37
3.4.5 Primary consciousness 37
3.5 Summary 37
Chapter 4 The Route to Normal Science 41
4.1 An aside: The philosophy ⇒ science transition in the science of consciousness 47
4.2 The taboo 51
4.3 Summary 55
Chapter 5 'Normal' Science 57
5.1 Normal science as paradigmatic science 58
5.2 Puzzle solving as normal science 60
5.3 Paradigms and scientific behaviour as tacit knowledge 63
5.4 The 'Law of Scientific Behaviour' - the first steps 66
5.5 Summary 74
Chapter 6 The Great Blockage 77
6.1 Scientific behaviour and world-view gestalt 78
6.2 Manifestations of blockage #1 - science 83
6.2.1 Ok. Enough 91
6.3 Manifestations of blockage #2 - engineering 93
6.4 Summary 97
Chapter 7 Cultural Learning Theory for Scientists 99
7.1 Introduction 99
7.2 The existing intersubjectivity-based learning framework 101
7.3 Attributes of a more general model 102
7.4 Definitions: Implicit, explicit and reportable models 106
7.5 A more generalised learning framework 107
7.6 The upgraded model: Discussion 115
7.7 Science, Scientific behaviour, scientific learning & self-governance 119
7.8 Summary 121
Chapter 8 The 'Law of Scientific Behaviour' 123
8.1 Scientific behaviour and the scientific paradigm 127
8.2 Down to business: tA 128
8.3 Causality, apparent causality and tn 36
8.4 Statement dynamics 140
8.5 Statements and objectivity 142
8.6 Statements and 'law', 'theory' and the like 142
8.7 Fake science 143
8.8 Robot science 146
8.9 Alien science '48
8.10 Zombie science 150
8.11 The post-zombie science apocalypse 154
8.12 Letting it settle in 155
8.13 Summary 156
Chapter 9 The Biology of Belief: Statement Formation 159
9.1 Dynamical systems 159
9.2 Non-stationary systems 162
9.3 Pendulum 'statements' in phase space, and its generalisation 164
9.4 Nonsense statements 167
9.5 More on the dynamics of changes in dynamics 172
9.6 Associative memory and the state trajectory 172
9.7 Induction - problem solved (again) 173
9.8 The mathematics of statement dynamics as belief dynamics 175
9.9 Lets stretch things a little further 180
9.10 P-consciousness within the state trajectory 180
9.11 Tokens, language and meaning 181
9.12 Building it 183
9.13 Homework 184
9.14 Summary 184
Chapter 10 Hierarchy, Emergence and Causality 187
10.1 Aside: Causality (causation) vs. critical dependency 191
10.2 The second aspect: A fundamental challenge 191
10.3 Causality, the 'Ghost in the Machine' 198
10.4 Dynamic Hierarchies 208
10.5 Dissapative and lossless dynamic hierarchies 209
10.6 Hierarchy change dynamics (dynamical agency) 211
10.7 Emergence: Redux 213
10.8 Final preparation - establishing nomenclature 215
10.9 Cognitive agency 218
10.10 Summary 220
Chapter 11 Dual Aspect Science 223
11.1 Motivating a new science framework 223
11.2 What is the fundamental character of the contents of set T'? 227
11.3 What is the behaviour ts that populates set T'? 227
11.4 Empirical implementation 228
11.5 The DAS framework: Overview 231
11.6 Practical exploration of set T': The natural cellular automaton 233
11.7 P-consciousness and the CA 236
11.8 More on the structure/appearance divide 239
11.9 The natural CA 243
11.10 Formal systems, the natural CA and DAS 245
11.11 The uniqueness of set T' 246
11.12 Alien structure-aspect science 247
11.13 Qualification and implementation of DAS 248
11.14 Physical and material 248
11.15 DAS and the ultimate questions 249
11.16 We're already doing it: The T' structure-aspect in existing literature 250
11.17 Theories of everything (TOE) 251
11.18 Miscellaneous issues 252
11.19 Summary 253
Chapter 12 Scientifically Testing for Consciousness 257
12.1 The paradigmatic doubt 259
12.2 Existing tests 260
12.3 The 'P-consciousness Test' (PCT) 263
12.4 Volition and the PCT 265
12.5 Embodiment and physical implementation 265
12.6 PCT overall strategy 267
12.7 'Radical novelty' and its forms 269
12.7.1 Communication as problem solving 269
12.7.2 Mirroring as problem solving 269
12.7.3 Mirrors and problem solving 270
12.7.4 Hardware intervention 270
12.8 PCT overall execution logistics- single trial 270
12.8.1 Stage 1 - The reward room 271
12.8.2 Stage 2 - The science room 271
12.8.3 Stage 3 - Return to the reward room 272
12.9 S(·) passes the PCT. What next? 274
Chapter 13 The Kuhnian Take: Wrapping Up 277
13.1 Anomaly and the signs of science revolution 277
13.2 The DAS aftermath: A preemptive postscript 284
13.3 Summary 294
Chapter 14 Machine Consciousness and DAS 295
14.1 Schism making 101 296
14.2 The tacit schism in neuromorphic engineering 297
14.3 Empirical science, theoretical science, replication, emulation and essential physics 298
14.4 Essential physics ⇔ consciousness entanglement 301
14.5 Emulation-based AGI 302
14.6 The blockage 302
14.7 The various blind persons and the elephant in the room 303
14.7.1 "The brain is an information processor" (not) 303
14.7.2 "But we are replicating!" (not) 304
14.7.3 "Replication involves biological cells" (not) 305
14.7.4 "Fridges have brains" (not) 305
14.8 Real replication (it's all electromagnetism) 306
14.9 Signing off 307
Bibliography 311
Index 317
