Task 1

Question 1

First person Data

Answer 1

refers to conscious subjective experience

Question 2

Third Person Data

Answer 2

refers to brain processes, behavior, environmental interactions

Question 3

science of consciousness

Answer 3

it is all about relating 3rd to 1st person data

Question 4

How can 3rd person data be measured?

Answer 4

EEG, brain imagining, single cell studies

Question 5

What are central constraint s of 3rd person data?

Answer 5

they stem from technological and ethical limitations rather then conceptual barriers

Question 6

fundamental theory of consciousness

Answer 6

-> not developed yet

idea refers to a broad connection principle that may lead to a universal law that underlies the two types of data

Question 7

What do contemporary scientists rely on?

Answer 7

first person data (psychophysics) where experiences of phenomena (eg illusions) are verbally described

Question 8

which methodology use contemporary scientists?

Answer 8

untutored introspection, verbal reports, formalism

Question 9

The greatest challenge is to develop more sophisticated methodologies.
What are obstacles in developing first person methodologies?

Answer 9

1 lack of incorrigible acess to our experience
2 when introspecting an experience, experience changes
3 it is impossible to access all our experiences at once
4 consequent possibility of ‘‘grant illusion’’

Question 10

What are the obstacles for first person formalism?

Answer 10

1 can content of experience be fully captured in language?

2 if a person did not have a certain experience - can a description be meaningful?

Question 11

intrinsic, non-structural aspects of experience

eg sensation of a colour

Answer 11

• underlying structures (hue, lightness) can be aapted to a proto-qualia theory
• people have same building blocks

Question 12

emotional experience

Answer 12

• difficulties with reliability
• emotions = inexpressive , especially if someone has never experienced emotions before
  (emotions vary on dimensions (duaration, intensity, affect))

Question 13

Neural correlate of consciousness

Answer 13

consciousness is not directly and straightforwardly and therefore problematic

(there is no consciousness meter available)

Question 14

pre-experimental bridging principle

Answer 14

interpretation of physical systems to judge consciousness

based on combination of :
1 conceptual judgements about what is count as conscious and what is not
2 info gleaned from first person data

Question 15

principle of interpretation

Answer 15

verbal report= most prevalent

• info that can be verbally reported is conscious
• info that is directly available for global control is concious

Question 16

rational reconstruction

Answer 16

if someone tries to justify a conclusion = justification follows shape of rational reconstruction

consciousness global availability
global availabilty cneural processes
so
consciousness neural processes

Question 17

What does the conclusions of NCC mean?

Answer 17

• presence of NCC wherever global availability is present, suggests that it is a mechanism that subserves global availability in the brain
• there are many neural correlates of consciousness because of many machanisms of global availability

_ NCC can be used as sort of consciousness meter

Question 18

permanent vegetative state

Answer 18

neurological categorization of patients who emerge from coma, appear to be awake but show no signs of awareness of self or environment

Question 19

fmri x consciousness

Answer 19

ctivation of primary
visual cortex, secondary visual association areas, non-visual areas BUT we don’t see the transition from unconscious to conscious perception

• fmri can only show precursors of a perception but not actual awarness of a person

Question 20

Which brain area generates consciousness?

Answer 20

consciousness is not generated by a specific brain area

Question 21

What is the main goal of clinical assessment of conscious patients

Answer 21

determine whether patient retains the capacity for a purposeful response to stimulation, however inconsistent

-> it is very challenging to distinguish purely reflexive from voluntary behaviors

Question 22

study of Cambridge and Liege

Answer 22

small proportion of patients in a vegetative or minimally conscious state have brain
activation reflecting some awareness & cognition
 careful clinical examination will result in reclassification of the state of consciousness

Question 23

consciousness can be dividided into two main components

Answer 23

1. awarness (command following)

2. arousal (eye opening)

Question 24

two main components of consciousness

Answer 24

consciousness content

consciousness level

Question 25

consciousness content

Answer 25

(qualitative aspect or awareness)‒nothing noticed –normal perception –hallucinations

Question 26

consciousness level

Answer 26

(quantitativeaspect or arousal)‒awake –unarousable –dead