A framework for consciousness

Crick, Francis; Koch, Christof

doi:10.1038/nn0203-119

Cited by 1,155 publications

(714 citation statements)

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“…Currently there are several theoretical attempts to integrate brain and mind within the same framework [14,23,26,309,380,[535][536][537][538]. However, practically all of them do not take phenomenal consciousness of mind seriously and at best try to explain it through its neural correlates [539][540][541] despite the fact that 'correlation' is too weak a relation to be definitive in any explanation [72].…”

Section: Methodological Aspects and Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Natural world physical, brain operational, and mind phenomenal space–time

Fingelkurts

Neves

2010

Physics of Life Reviews

166

233

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Concepts of space and time are widely developed in physics. However, there is a considerable lack of biologically plausible theoretical frameworks that can demonstrate how space and time dimensions are implemented in the activity of the most complex life-system -the brain with a mind. Brain activity is organized both temporally and spatially, thus representing space-time in the brain. Critical analysis of recent research on the space-time organization of the brain's activity pointed to the existence of so-called operational space-time in the brain. This space-time is limited to the execution of brain operations of differing complexity. During each such brain operation a particular short-term spatio-temporal pattern of integrated activity of different brain areas emerges within related operational space-time. At the same time, to have a fully functional human brain one needs to have a subjective mental experience. Current research on the subjective mental experience offers detailed analysis of space-time organization of the mind. According to this research, subjective mental experience (subjective virtual world) has definitive spatial and temporal properties similar to many physical phenomena. Based on systematic review of the propositions and tenets of brain and mind space-time descriptions, our aim in this review essay is to explore the relations between the two. To be precise, we would like to discuss the hypothesis that via the brain operational space-time the mind subjective space-time is connected to otherwise distant physical space-time reality.Key words: spatial, temporal, consciousness, cognition, operation, architectonics, EEG, field, metastability, physics, coordinative dynamics, self-organization, cortex.

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Section: Methodological Aspects and Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Natural world physical, brain operational, and mind phenomenal space–time

Fingelkurts

Neves

2010

Physics of Life Reviews

166

233

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“…While adaptation or inhibition mechanisms at the sensory level have been suggested as the loci of multistable visual perception, perceptual alternation might also depend on an interplay between bottom-up, sensory and internal, top-down, neural processes (see Leopold and Logothetis, 1999;Kast, 2001;Blake and Logothetis, 2002, for a review). From this view, coordinated neuronal activations among widely distributed visual, parietal and frontal brain regions might be critical for perceptual awareness (Dehaene and Nacache, 2001;Crick and Koch, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parieto-frontal gamma band activity during the perceptual emergence of speech forms

et al. 2008

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The multistable perception of speech refers to the perceptual changes experienced while listening to a speech form cycled in rapid and continuous repetition, the so-called Verbal Transformation Effect. Because distinct interpretations of the same repeated stimulus alternate spontaneously, this effect provides an invaluable tool to examine how speech percepts are formed in the listener's mind. In order to track the temporal dynamics of brain activity specifically linked to perceptual changes, intracerebral EEG activity was recorded from two implanted epileptic patients while performing a verbal transformation task. To this aim, they were asked to carefully listen to a speech sequence played repeatedly and to press a button whenever they perceived a change in the repeated utterance. For both patients, 300-800 ms prior to the reported perceptual transitions, high frequency activity in the gamma band range (> 40 Hz) was observed within the left inferior frontal and supramarginal gyri. An additional auditory decision task was used to rule out the possibility that the increased gamma band activity was due to the patients' motor responses. These results suggest that articulatory-based representations play a key part in the endogenously driven emergence of auditory speech percepts. The findings are interpreted in relation to theories assuming a link between perception and action in the human speech processing system.

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“…Meador, Ray, Echauz, Loring, & Vachtsevanos, 2002) presently modulations in the lower frequency bandwidth were demonstrated. Albeit Crick and Koch (2003) have recently argued that c frequency band might to be critical to consciousness, it is important to distinguish between findings derived from studying local networks (e.g., visual cortex) that are specifically tuned to process information at higher frequency ranges (Crick & Koch, 1997) and findings from global distributed networks between which convey information at lower frequency bandwidths (Lubar, 1997;Silberstein, 1995). The present data suggest that a level of EEG coherence normally indicating consciousness can be reached when stimuli are presented below the psychophysical threshold of conscious awareness.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extending the global workspace theory to emotion: Phenomenality without access

Schutter

Honk

2004

Consciousness and Cognition

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Recent accounts on the global workspace theory suggest that consciousness involves transient formations of functional connections in thalamo-cortico-cortical networks. The level of connectivity in these networks is argued to determine the state of consciousness. Emotions are suggested to play a role in shaping consciousness, but their involvement in the global workspace theory remains elusive. In the present study, the role of emotion in the neural workspace theory of consciousness was scrutinized by investigating, whether unconscious (masked) and conscious (unmasked) display of emotional compared to neutral facial expressions would differentially modulate EEG coherence. EEG coherence was measured by means of computing an average EEG coherence value between the frontal, parietal, and midline scalp sites. Objective awareness checks evidenced that conscious identification of the masked facial expressions was precluded. Analyses revealed reductions in EEG coherence in the lower frequency range for the masked as compared to unmasked neutral facial expressions. Crucially, a decline in EEG coherence was not observed for the emotional facial expressions. In other words, the level of EEG coherence did apparently vary as a function of awareness, but not when emotion was involved. The current finding suggests that EEG coherence is modulated by unconscious emotional processes, which extends common views on the global workspace architecture of consciousness.

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A framework for consciousness

Cited by 1,155 publications

References 45 publications

Natural world physical, brain operational, and mind phenomenal space–time

Natural world physical, brain operational, and mind phenomenal space–time

Parieto-frontal gamma band activity during the perceptual emergence of speech forms

Extending the global workspace theory to emotion: Phenomenality without access

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