Feeling & Knowing

Key Takeaways

1. Life's intelligence predates consciousness and minds

Non-explicit intelligence is all that the simpler and mindless organisms have available. Their intelligence lacks the riches and the power generated by overt representations. Humans have both kinds of intelligence.

Primordial intelligence. Life began with remarkable intelligence embedded in single-cell organisms like bacteria. This non-explicit intelligence, based on chemical processes and homeostatic regulation, allowed these organisms to:

• Sense their environment
• Respond to stimuli
• Solve problems related to survival
• Cooperate and compete with other organisms

Evolution of intelligence. As life evolved, this foundational intelligence remained, while new forms emerged:

• Sensing/detecting abilities in plants and simple animals
• Minds capable of creating mental images in more complex organisms
• Feelings as a bridge between body states and mental processes
• Consciousness as the pinnacle of mental evolution in humans and some animals

Human intelligence is unique in that it combines both the ancient, non-explicit intelligence and the newer, explicit forms based on mental representations and conscious reasoning.

2. Feelings are the foundation of consciousness

Feelings were and are the beginning of an adventure called consciousness.

The nature of feelings. Feelings are not purely mental phenomena, but hybrids of mind and body:

• They originate from the body's interior, reflecting states of viscera and other internal organs
• They represent qualities and values related to homeostasis and survival
• They provide a direct experience of our biological state

Feelings and consciousness. Feelings play a crucial role in the emergence of consciousness:

• They provide the first sense of ownership of mental experiences
• They anchor mental processes to the physical body
• They motivate actions based on biological needs and states

The evolution of feelings allowed organisms to not just react to stimuli, but to experience their own existence. This self-referential quality of feelings laid the groundwork for the development of full-fledged consciousness.

3. Consciousness arises from the ownership of mental images

Consciousness is a gathering of knowledge sufficient to generate, in the midst of flowing images, automatically, the notion that the images are mine, are happening in my living organism, and that the mind is...well, mine too!

Components of consciousness. Consciousness emerges from the interplay of several elements:

• Mental images derived from sensory perceptions
• Feelings reflecting internal body states
• A sense of ownership and perspective

The process of consciousness. Consciousness is created when:

1. The mind generates a flow of mental images
2. Feelings provide a sense of ownership and self-reference
3. These elements combine to create a subjective experience of being the owner of one's thoughts and perceptions

This process doesn't require any mysterious or inexplicable phenomena. Instead, it's a natural consequence of the brain's ability to generate mental images and the body's capacity to produce feelings that anchor these images to a specific organism.

4. The brain and body collaborate to create consciousness

While the brain is an indispensable part of the generation of consciousness, nothing suggests that the brain generates consciousness alone. On the contrary, the non-neural tissues of the organism's body proper contribute importantly to the creation of any conscious moment and must be a part of the problem's solution.

Brain-body interaction. Consciousness is not solely a product of the brain, but emerges from the interplay between:

• Neural processes in the brain
• Bodily states and processes
• The interoceptive system that connects them

Key brain regions. Several brain areas are crucial for consciousness:

• Posterior sensory cortices: Create and display mental images
• Insular cortex and subcortical structures: Generate feelings
• Posteromedial cortices (PMC): Coordinate conscious processes

Body's role. The body contributes to consciousness by:

• Providing the raw material for feelings through internal organ states
• Offering a physical frame of reference for mental experiences
• Interacting with the brain through the interoceptive nervous system

This intimate brain-body collaboration explains why consciousness is always from the perspective of a specific organism and why our subjective experiences are so deeply tied to our physical existence.

5. Artificial intelligence lacks the crucial element of feelings

It is time to recognize these facts and time to open a new chapter in the history of AI and robotics. It is apparent that we can develop machines that operate along the lines of "homeostatic feelings."

Current limitations of AI. Traditional artificial intelligence focuses on problem-solving and information processing, neglecting:

• The role of feelings in guiding behavior
• The embodied nature of intelligence
• The motivational aspects of consciousness

A new direction for AI. To create more human-like AI, we need to incorporate:

• Simulated bodily states and processes
• Artificial feelings that guide decision-making
• A sense of ownership and self-reference

Potential benefits. Developing "feeling machines" could:

• Lead to more adaptable and creative AI systems
• Provide insights into human cognition and behavior
• Create more effective human-AI collaborations

While true consciousness in machines remains a distant goal, incorporating aspects of feelings and embodiment could significantly advance the field of artificial intelligence.

6. Consciousness is not synonymous with wakefulness or attention

Being conscious and being awake are often regarded as the same, and yet consciousness and wakefulness are quite distinct.

Distinguishing consciousness. It's important to differentiate consciousness from related but distinct phenomena:

• Wakefulness: The state of being alert and responsive
• Attention: The focus of cognitive resources on specific stimuli
• Sensing: The ability to detect environmental changes

Characteristics of consciousness. True consciousness involves:

• Subjective experience of mental contents
• A sense of ownership of thoughts and perceptions
• Integration of various mental processes into a unified experience

Implications. Understanding these distinctions helps in:

• Diagnosing disorders of consciousness
• Developing more precise theories of mind
• Creating better treatments for conditions affecting consciousness

While often conflated, consciousness, wakefulness, and attention are separate processes that can be dissociated in various neurological conditions and states of altered consciousness.

7. Human achievements are built on nature's foundational designs

We need to balance the account of how humans got to the present and recognize the fact that the fundamental devices we have used to succeed in our niche consist of transformations and upgrades of devices previously used by other living forms throughout a long history of individual and social successes.

Evolutionary continuity. Human cultural achievements are not created ex nihilo, but build upon:

• Biological mechanisms of homeostasis and adaptation
• Non-explicit intelligence found in simpler organisms
• Social behaviors and cooperation seen across species

Examples of foundational designs:

• Homeostatic regulation → Cultural norms and ethics
• Bacterial quorum sensing → Human social coordination
• Plant and animal symbiosis → Complex human societies

Implications. Recognizing this continuity:

• Humbles our view of human exceptionalism
• Informs our approach to environmental and social challenges
• Provides insights for technological and cultural innovations

By understanding the deep roots of our achievements in nature's designs, we can better appreciate our place in the ecosystem and develop more sustainable and harmonious ways of living.

8. The fabric of mind may involve quantum-level processes

To say that mind processes rely on bioelectrical events in neuron circuits is certainly correct. But can we go search beneath that statement? It is there, I suspect, that it may be helpful to investigate the physical structure and dynamics of neural tissues and of the non-neural surroundings in which they are embedded.

Beyond classical neuroscience. While traditional neuroscience focuses on neural circuits and synapses, there may be deeper processes at work:

• Quantum-level events within neurons
• Interactions between neural and non-neural tissues
• Subtle physical phenomena not captured by current models

Potential quantum influences. Quantum processes might play a role in:

• Information processing within neurons
• The emergence of conscious experiences
• The binding of disparate neural activities into unified percepts

Implications for research. Exploring these possibilities could:

• Lead to new theories of consciousness and cognition
• Inspire novel technologies for studying the brain
• Bridge the gap between neuroscience and physics

While speculative, the idea that quantum processes might underlie mental phenomena offers an intriguing avenue for future research and could potentially resolve some of the mysteries surrounding consciousness and cognition.

9. Consciousness is a systems-level phenomenon, not a mystery

Consciousness is a systems-level phenomenon. It calls for a rearrangement of the furniture of mind, not the fabrication of the individual pieces.

Demystifying consciousness. Rather than an inexplicable mystery, consciousness can be understood as:

• An emergent property of complex biological systems
• The result of specific arrangements of mental processes
• A natural consequence of brain-body interactions

Key components. Consciousness arises from the integration of:

• Mental images derived from sensory perceptions
• Feelings reflecting internal body states
• A sense of ownership and perspective
• Memory and learning processes

Practical implications. This systems-level view of consciousness:

• Guides research into disorders of consciousness
• Informs the development of AI and robotics
• Provides a framework for understanding altered states of consciousness

By recognizing consciousness as a systems-level phenomenon, we can approach its study more systematically and potentially develop new ways to enhance, restore, or even recreate conscious experiences in artificial systems.

Last updated: May 28, 2025

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