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Are there islands of awareness?

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Version 2 2023-06-12, 09:13
Version 1 2023-06-09, 19:38
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-12, 09:13 authored by Tim Bayne, Anil SethAnil Seth, Marcello Massimini
Ordinary human experience is embedded in a web of causal relations that link the brain to the body and the wider environment. However, there might be conditions in which brain activity supports consciousness even when that activity is fully causally isolated from the body and its environment. Such cases would involve what we call ‘islands of awareness’: conscious states that are neither shaped by sensory input nor able to be expressed by motor output. This paper considers conditions in which such islands might occur, including ex cranio brains, hemispherotomy, and in cerebral organoids. We examine possible methods for 2 detecting islands of awareness, and consider their implications for ethics and for the nature of consciousness.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Trends in Neurosciences

ISSN

0166-2236

Publisher

Elsevier

Issue

1

Volume

43

Page range

6-16

Department affiliated with

  • Informatics Publications

Research groups affiliated with

  • Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science Publications

Full text available

  • No

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2019-11-14

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2019-11-14

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2019-11-13

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