scholarly journals How sustainable are different levels of consciousness?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Johan Wiersma
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Global Workspace ◽  
Incoming Information ◽  
Theoretical Paper ◽  
Conscious Processing ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Different Levels ◽  
Global Workspace Theory

The human brain processes a wide variety of inputs and does so either consciously or subconsciously. According to the Global Workspace theory, conscious processing involves broadcasting of information to several regions of the brain and subconscious processing involves more localized processing. This theoretical paper aims to expand on some of the aspects of the Global Workspace theory: how the properties of incoming information result in it being processed subconsciously or consciously; why processing can be either be sustained or short-lived; how the Global Workspace theory may apply both to real-time sensory input as well as to internally retained information. This paper proposes that: familiar input which does not elicit intense emotions becomes processed subconsciously and such processing can be continuous and sustained; input that elicits relatively intense emotions is subjected to highly sustainable conscious processing; input can also undergo meta-conscious processing. Such processing is not very sustainable but can exert control over other cognitive processes. This paper also discusses possible benefits of regulating cognitive processes this way.

A Three-Component-System Hypothesis of Psychosis

1989 ◽  
Vol 155 (S5) ◽  
pp. 37-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hinderk M. Emrich
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Causative Factor ◽  
Microscopic Level ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Component System ◽  
Pathogenetic Factor ◽  
Pet Scans ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Different Levels

Hypotheses as to the pathogenesis of schizophrenia can be discussed at different levels of a possible manifestation of the causative factor: the macroscopic-morphological, the microscopic-morphological, and the molecular. Some abnormalities have been observed on all of them: e.g. increased ventricular-brain ratios in CT, hypofrontality in SPECT and in glucographic PET-scans, and other macromorphological abnormalities (for reviews cf. Bogerts 1984; Mundt, 1986; Bogerts et al, 1987), gliosis on a microscopic level (Stevens, 1982), and an increased dopamine-binding in in vivo receptor studies (PET as well as in post-mortem studies; Cazzullo, 1988). However, the diversity and variability of these findings point to the view that rather than there being a single distinct pathogenetic factor responsible for the pathogenesis of schizophrenic psychoses, a constitutional disposition exists, which can be described as a functional dysequilibrium within the human brain. From this point of view, schizophrenia would not appear as an inherited disorder of metabolism, but as a weakness of a neurobiological ‘system’, i.e. as an interactional disorder of a complex of networks, in which the interaction between different substructures is labile in such a way that under special conditions (e.g. ‘stress’), a decompensation (functional breakdown) results. In this sense, ‘vulnerability’ to schizophrenia may be interpreted as a consequence of a constitutional deficiency of the brain which results in an inability to stabilise, under specially challenging conditions, the interaction between different substructures of the human brain. Before this ‘functional dysequilibrium-hypothesis’ (which is a special form of a constitutional structural deficiency-hypothesis) is discussed, and before the question is raised as to which are the relevant dysequilibrated components, some indication will be given as to why such an hypothesis appears plausible.

scholarly journals The Neuroactivation of Cognitive Processes Investigated with SPECT

2000 ◽  
Vol 12 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 53-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Montaldi ◽  
Andrew R. Mayes
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Healthy Subjects ◽  
Functional Mapping ◽  
Normal Brain ◽  
Memory Processing ◽  
Yield Information ◽  
Normal Brain Function ◽  
The Brain

The last ten years have seen the development and expansion of an exciting new field of neuroscientific research; functional mapping of the human brain. Whilst many of the questions addressed by this area of research could be answered using SPECT, relatively few SPECT activation studies of this kind have been carried out. The present paper combines an evaluation of SPECT procedures used for neuroactivation studies, and their comparison with other imaging modalities (i.e., PET and fMRI), with a review of SPECT neuroactivation studies that yield information concerning normal brain function with a particular emphasis on the brain activations produced by memory processing. The paper aims to describe and counter common misunderstandings regarding potential limitations of the SPECT technique, to explain and illustrate which SPECT procedures best fulfill the requirements of a neuroactivation study, and how best to obtain information about normal brain function (whether using normal healthy subjects or patients) and finally to highlight SPECT’s potential future role in the functional mapping of the human brain.

Global-workspace theory

2019 ◽  
pp. 96-115
Author(s):  
Peter Carruthers
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Neuroscience ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Theoretical Background ◽  
Neural Correlates Of Consciousness ◽  
Nonhuman Animals ◽  
Global Workspace ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Global Workspace Theory

The present chapter outlines and defends the empirical case supporting global-workspace theory as the best account of the functional/neural correlates of consciousness, at least. The chapter explains the theoretical background to global-workspace theory and the evidence that supports it. It shows how the theory is well-supported by raft of findings in psychology and cognitive neuroscience, as well as by recent experiments tracking conscious contents in the brain. The chapter also replies to a variety of critiques and alleged forms of counter-evidence. It concludes by considering whether the fact that much of this evidence has been collected in work with nonhuman animals begs the consciousness-question that forms our topic (arguing that it does not).

scholarly journals Enhanced deviant responses in patterned relative to random sound sequences

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosy Southwell ◽  
Maria Chait
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Automatic Processing ◽  
Specific Pattern ◽  
Visual Task ◽  
Brain Responses ◽  
Temporal Pole ◽  
Incoming Information ◽  
Preceding Context

AbstractHow are brain responses to deviant events affected by the statistics of the preceding context? We recorded electroencephalography (EEG) brain responses to frequency deviants in matched, regularly-patterned (REG) versus random (RAND) tone-pip sequences. Listeners were naïve and distracted by an incidental visual task. Stimuli were very rapid so as to limit conscious reasoning about the sequence order and tap automatic processing of regularity.Deviants within REG sequences evoked a substantially larger response (by 71%) than matched deviants in RAND sequences from 80 ms after deviant onset. This effect was underpinned by distinct sources in right temporal pole and orbitofrontal cortex in addition to the standard bilateral temporal and right pre-frontal network for generic frequency deviance-detection. These findings demonstrate that the human brain rapidly acquires a detailed representation of regularities within the sensory input and evaluates incoming information according to the context established by the specific pattern.

scholarly journals Direct brain recordings reveal continuous encoding of structure in random stimuli

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Fuhrer ◽  
Kyrre Glette ◽  
Jugoslav Ivanovic ◽  
Pal Gunnar Larsson ◽  
Tristan Andres Bekinschtein ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Frequency ◽  
Sensory Input ◽  
Hierarchical Organization ◽  
Brain Areas ◽  
Incoming Information ◽  
High Frequency Activity ◽  
Conditional Relations ◽  
Transitional Probabilities ◽  
Intracranial Electroencephalography ◽  
The Brain

The brain excels at processing sensory input, even in rich or chaotic environments. Mounting evidence attributes this to the creation of sophisticated internal models of the environment that draw on statistical structures in the unfolding sensory input. Understanding how and where this modeling takes place is a core question in statistical learning. It is unknown how this modeling applies to random sensory signals. Here, we identify conditional relations, through transitional probabilities, as an implicit structure supporting the encoding of a random auditory stream. We evaluate this representation using intracranial electroencephalography recordings by applying information-theoretical principles to high-frequency activity (75-145 Hz). We demonstrate how the brain continuously encodes conditional relations between random stimuli in a network outside of the auditory system following a hierarchical organization including temporal, frontal and hippocampal regions. Our results highlight that hierarchically organized brain areas continuously attempt to order incoming information by maintaining a probabilistic representation of the sensory input, even under random stimuli presentation.

scholarly journals Modulatory Effects of Prediction Accuracy on Electroencephalographic Brain Activity During Prediction

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kentaro Ono ◽  
Junya Hashimoto ◽  
Ryosuke Hiramoto ◽  
Takafumi Sasaoka ◽  
Shigeto Yamawaki
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Prediction Error ◽  
Coding Theory ◽  
Prediction Accuracy ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Subjective Evaluation ◽  
Predictive Coding ◽  
Upcoming Event ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Different Levels

Prediction is essential for the efficiency of many cognitive processes; however, this process is not always perfect. Predictive coding theory suggests that the brain generates and updates a prediction to respond to an upcoming event. Although an electrophysiological index of prediction, the stimulus preceding negativity (SPN), has been reported, it remains unknown whether the SPN reflects the prediction accuracy, or whether it is associated with the prediction error, which corresponds to a mismatch between a prediction and an actual input. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate this question using electroencephalography (EEG). Participants were asked to predict the original pictures from pictures that had undergone different levels of pixelation. The SPN amplitude was affected by the level of pixelation and correlated with the subjective evaluation of the prediction accuracy. Furthermore, late positive components (LPC) were negatively correlated with SPN. These results suggest that the amplitude of SPN reflects the prediction accuracy; more accurate prediction increases the SPN and reduces the prediction error, resulting in reduced LPC amplitudes.

scholarly journals Sense Theory

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Egger L. Mielberg
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Mathematical Theory ◽  
Human Being ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
System A ◽  
Intellectual System ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Self Learning ◽  
The Brain

Cognitive processes of human brain are strongly tied to such a well-known part of the brain as cortex. All psychological, logical or illogical solutions made by a human being are the result of the cortex. Thus, the maximum approximation of mathematical theory to the processes of the cortex can become a good trampoline to the creation of a self-learning intellectual system, a Real Artificial Intelligence.We propose a new concept of mathematical theory which gives a possibility to form, find and separate senses of two or more objects of different nature. The theory encompasses the knowledge of cybernetics, linguistics, neurobiology, and classical mathematics.The Sense Theory is not a part of traditional mathematics as we know it now, it is a new paradigm of how we can formalize complex cognitive processes of the human brain.

A biocognitive approach to the conscious core of immediate memory

2001 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernard J. Baars
Keyword(s):  
Limited Capacity ◽  
Dynamic Activity ◽  
Immediate Memory ◽  
Global Workspace ◽  
Brain Architecture ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Global Workspace Theory

The limited capacity of immediate memory “rides” on the even more limited capacity of consciousness, which reflects the dynamic activity of the thalamocortical core of the brain. Recent views of the conscious narrow-capacity component of the brain are explored with reference to global workspace theory (Baars 1988; 1993; 1998). The radical limits of immediate memory must be explained in terms of biocognitive brain architecture.

scholarly journals An Integration of Deep Learning and Neuroscience for Machine Consciousness

2019 ◽  
pp. 21-29
Author(s):  
Ali Mallakin
Keyword(s):  
Brain Function ◽  
Modular Organization ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Brain Areas ◽  
Frontal Part ◽  
Global Workspace ◽  
Conscious Processing ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Large Neurons

Conscious processing is a useful aspect of brain function that can be used as a model to design artificial-intelligence devices. There are still certain computational features that our conscious brains possess, and which machines currently fail to perform those. This paper discusses the necessary elements needed to make the device conscious and suggests if those implemented, the resulting machine would likely to be considered conscious. Consciousness mainly presented as a computational tool that evolved to connect the modular organization of the brain. Specialized modules of the brain process information unconsciously and what we subjectively experience as consciousness is the global availability of data, which is made possible by a nonmodular global workspace. During conscious perception, the global neuronal work space at parieto-frontal part of the brain selectively amplifies relevant pieces of information. Supported by large neurons with long axons, which makes the long-distance connectivity possible, the selected portions of information stabilized and transmitted to all other brain modules. The brain areas that have structuring ability seem to match to a specific computational problem. The global workspace maintains this information in an active state for as long as it is needed. In this paper, a broad range of theories and specific problems have been discussed, which need to be solved to make the machine conscious. Later particular implications of these hypotheses for research approach in neuroscience and machine learning are debated.

scholarly journals On the Relationship Between Intuition, Consciousness and Cognition: In Search of a Unified Concept of Mind

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Czesław S. Nosal
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Cognitive Psychology ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Memory System ◽  
New Synthesis ◽  
Conscious Processing ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Brain

This paper argues that within contemporary neuroscience and cognitive psychology a new theoretical framework is emerging for the integrated consideration of unconscious (intuitive) processing with conscious ones. This framework requires inclusion of new theories of the brain and consciousness dynamics (Baars, Damasio, Dehaene, Friston, Gazzaniga, LeDoux), evolution of the human memory system (Tulving), and theories of procedural, associative and working memory (Baddley, Reber). Evolutionarily old intuitive processing is not unique, and it is an integral component of any cognitive processes. A revolutionary new synthesis combining intuitive and conscious processing may take the form of a mind vector integrating the two.

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