Consciousness
Buddhism, Philosophy, and Consciousness
Week 2 of 4 in the series, 'Buddhism, Science, Philosophy, and
Consciousness. Mahasraddha and Chris discuss the different
approaches to consciousness in Buddhism and Western philosophy.
Given at the Manchester Buddhist Centre on April 2nd 2007
Consciousness
Consciousness derives from the Latin conscientia which primarily
means moral conscience or, in the literal sense, shared
knowledge
Oxford Dictionary:
1. Awareness of
2. The totality of a persons thoughts and feelings or a class of
these
Consciousness in 1600
Consciousness
Qualities such as:-
Subjectivity
Self-awareness
Sentience (perception through the senses)
Sapience (wisdom)
Ability to perceive relationships between oneself and ones
environment
Perspective
Energy pyramids and food chains
The movement of energy through living organisms. Because there
is less and less energy to go around as it moves through the animal
food chain, there are less and less animals. Although the mass of
the top most animals per individual is very large, the total mass
of those animals is much less than the total mass and weight of the
Primary Producers.
Human evolution
This tree is based on morphological and genetic data.
Chimpanzees and humans form a clade with DNA sequences that differ
by only 1%. This genetic similarity made it hard to figure out
exactly how these two primates are related, but recent genetic
studies have strongly suggested that chimpanzees and humans are
each others closest living relative.
Human evolution
About six million years ago in Africa, the chimpanzee lineage
and our own split. What happened to us after that split? The
hominid lineage did not march in a straight line to Homo sapiens.
Instead, the early hominid lineage gave rise to many other (now
extinct) hominids. Examining the fossils, the artifacts, and even
the DNA of these relatives has helped us understand how this
complex hominid tree evolved, and how modern humans came to exist.
Here are some of the important events in human history, with
approximate dates, which reflect the evidence currently available.
1) Before 5 mya: In Africa, our ancestral lineage and the
chimpanzee lineage split. 2) Before 4 mya: The hominid
Australopithecus anamensis walked around what is now Kenya on its
hind legs. 3) >3 mya: Australopithecus afarensis (Lucy) lived in
Africa. 4) 2.5 mya: Some hominids made tools by chipping stones to
form a cutting edge. There were perhaps four or more species of
hominid living in Africa. 5) 2 mya: The first members of the Homo
clade, with their relatively large brains, lived in Africa. 6) 1.5
mya: Hand axes were used. Also, hominids had spread out of Africa
and into much of Asia and Europe. These hominids included the
ancestors of Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) in Europe and
Homo erectus in Asia. 7) 100,000 years ago: Human brains reached
more or less the current range of sizes. Early Homo sapiens lived
in Africa. At the same time, Homo neanderthalensis and Homo erectus
lived in other parts of the Old World. 8) 50,000 years ago: Human
cultures produced cave paintings and body adornment, and
constructed elaborate burials. Also, some groups of modern humans
extended their range beyond Africa. 9) 25,000 years ago: Other Homo
species had gone extinct, leaving only modern humans, Homo sapiens,
spread throughout the Old World.
Evolution of consciousness
One foot tall statuette carved from ivory 30000 years ago.
Feline face and human bodyare evidence of artist's ability to
think abstractly
Brain structure and size
Neurons transmit messages in the brain
Myelin SheathNodes ofRanvierAxon TerminalsDendritesNucleusCell
Body(Soma)Dendrites bring information to the cell body and axons
take information away from the cell body
Development of the brain
Functionality of the brain
Three Basic Units of the Human Brain
Rational brainNeocortexIntellectual tasksIntermediate
brainLimbic systemEmotionsPrimitive brainSelf
preservation/aggression
The Thalamocortical system
Note interactions between posterior thalamocortical areas
involved in perceptualcategorisation and anterior areas related to
memory, value & planning
Key concepts of consciousness
Dynamic core
Is the current but constantly changing pattern of reentrant
neuronal groups that are active at any one time
Process of their reentry is basis of consciousness
How can the reentrant activity account for both the unitary
nature of consciousness as well as its complexity and
changeability?
Processes, not definitions
Karl Popper:-
Knowledge and understanding advance not through asking for
definitions of what things are, but through asking why they occur
and how they work
