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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

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Whatisconsciousness?

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Whatdoesitmeanforsomethingto"haveconsciousness"?Whatisthe
differencebetweensomethingthathasconsciousnessandsomethingthat
doesn't?

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JohnRingland
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JohnRingland,Iamawareoftheassumptionsthatma...(more)
9upvotesbyFlemmingFunch,ArianeKiss,JavedQadrudDin,(more)

Iseetwoapproachestothisissueandwillintroducethembybrieflydescribing
thecontextanddevelopmentofeach,showinghowoneleadsintotheother.I
haveendeavouredtokeepthisassimpleandconciseaspossibleforasubjectof
thisdepth.
1)NaveRealistApproach
Naverealismisacognitivehabitoperatingineachmomentofawarenessthat
causesthemindtoassumethatthesubjectiveobjectsofexperienceareinfact
objectiveexternalobjects.SeeJohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisnave
realism?
ThuswhenIseeachairinfrontofmeIsimplyassumethatthisisbecause
thereisachairinfrontofme.Idonotquestiontheperceptualformsthatarise
inthemind,northeconceptualcategoriesthatIhabituallyassociatewith
thoseforms.Hencethisformofrealismiscallednave,becauseitisan
unconsideredandmerelyassumedepistemologicalposition.Whenitis
expressedasaconsciouslyheldphilosophicalbeliefitiscalleddirectrealism.

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Wethenlookoutfromthisperspectiveof"beingme"uponan"external
physicaluniverse".Itmayturnouttobetrue,butatthispointtherehasbeen
noevidencewhatsoever.Therehasonlybeentheaccumulationofbeliefs
arisingfromnaverealistassumptionsaboutthecontentsofsubjective
awareness.Thusthemindconformstoaselfreproducingclosedloopof
hiddenassumptions.
Thiskeepsthecognitiveandculturaldiscoursesunwittinglyboundwithina
naverealistframework.Thisformsintoanallpervasiveunconscious
paradigm.See
JohnRingland'sanswertoDowehaveacollectiveparadigm?Else,isit
fragmented?
JohnRingland'sanswertoCaniteverbesaidthatScientificrealismtakesoff
fromthespringboardofcommonsenseornaiverealism?and
JohnRingland'sanswertoHassciencebecometoodogmatic?
WhatIsConsciousness?
Upvote 9
Downvote Comments 1+ Share
Fromthisstandpointweclaimthatwearephysicalorganismsandthatthe
brainimplementsconsciousnessvianeuralactivity.Thenweaskourselves
"Whatisconsciousness?"
FromthisperspectiveitisknowntoscienceastheHardProblemof
Consciousness,becausenobodyreallyhasacluehowtoansweritorevenhow
toworktowardsananswer.Therearemanyworkingonthe'easy'aspects,such
ashowdoneuralnetworksfunctionandsoon.Butnothingfromthesefields
canaddressthe'hard'problemofexperientialawareness.
Thereallyhardproblemofconsciousnessistheproblemofexperience.
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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

Whenwethinkandperceive,thereisawhirofinformationprocessing,but
thereisalsoasubjectiveaspect.AsNagel(1974)hasputit,thereis
somethingitisliketobeaconsciousorganism.Thissubjectiveaspectis
experience.Whenwesee,forexample,weexperiencevisualsensations:the
feltqualityofredness,theexperienceofdarkandlight,thequalityofdepth
inavisualfield.(DavidChalmers,FacingUptotheProblemof
Consciousness )
Furthermore,thewholeunderlyingparadigmisbeginningtofallapart.For
instance,eachattempttolocateandstudy'matter'hasprovenitnottoexist.
SeeWhatismatter?andDoesmatterexist?
"Letusnowreturntoourultimateparticlesandtosmallorganizationsof
particlesasatomsorsmallmolecules.Theoldideaaboutthemwasthat
theirindividualitywasbasedontheidentityofmatterinthem...Thenew
ideaisthatwhatispermanentintheseultimateparticlesorsmallaggregates
istheirshapeandorganization...Theyareasitwere,pureshape,nothing
butshapewhatturnsupagainandagaininsuccessiveobservationsisthis
shape,notanindividualspeckofmaterial..."(ErwinSchrdinger )
[Thus]modernphilosophicalmaterialistsattempttoextendthedefinition
ofmattertoincludeotherscientificallyobservableentitiessuchasenergy,
forces,andthecurvatureofspace.Howeverthisopensthemtofurther
criticismfromphilosopherssuchasMaryMidgleywhosuggestthatthe
conceptof'matter'iselusiveandpoorlydefined.(Wikipedia,
Materialism )
Tosomedegreeskepticismmanifestsitselfinthescientificmethod,which
demandsthatallthingsassumedasfactsbequestioned.Butthepositivism
ofmanyscientists,whetherlatentoropen,isincompatiblewithskepticism,
foritacceptswithoutquestiontheassumptionthatmaterialeffectis
impossiblewithoutmaterialcause.(TheColumbiaEncyclopedia)
Empiricalscienceonlyclaims
"thatagoodtheoryneedonlyprovideanempiricallyadequatedescription
ofobservablephenomena"(StanfordEncyclopediaofPhilosophy,
Rationalismvs.Empiricism )
Itdoesn'tclaimtobeabletoascertainanykindoftruthbutratheritonly
claimstohavephenomenologicaladequacyregardingdescriptionsofour
perceptionsofthings.Thismeansthatempiricalscienceisfundamentally
unabletoaddressanyquestionsofontology(whatactuallyis)anditcanonly
addressquestionsofphenomenology(thatwhichappearstothehumanmind).
Empiricistsclaimthatsenseexperienceistheultimatesourceofallour
conceptsandknowledge(StanfordEncyclopediaofPhilosophy,
Rationalismvs.Empiricism )
Becauseofthisrelianceontheobjectsofsenseperception,whichare
unquestioninglyassumedtobeexternalobjects,empiricalsciencehas
succumbedtonaverealismandsubtlydevolvedintoScientism.
Thisisbecauseempiricistsdidnotquestionthenatureandvalidityofsense
experiences,orofthemindthatishavingthem,butmerelytookthemasbeing
representativeofbeingapersoninaphysicaluniverse.SeeJohnRingland's
answertoCaniteverbesaidthatScientificrealismtakesofffromthe
springboardofcommonsenseornaiverealism?
Naverealismitselfhasbeenchallengedbyphilosophy,psychologyand
neuroscience,andnowquantummechanicshasprovenbeyondalldoubtthat
naverealismisafalseepistemologythatprovidesfalseknowledgeofreality.
TheSternGerlachexperimentinparticulardrivesthispointhome.SeeJohn
Ringland'sanswertoInsimpleterms,whatdoestheSternGerlachexperiment
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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

implyaboutthenatureofquantumsystemsandobservablephenomena?
Thusthereisaparadigmshifthappening!
Thereisamajordangerousscientificideaincontemporaryphysics,witha
potentialimpactcomparabletoCopernicusorDarwin.Itistheideathat
whatthephysicsofthe20thcenturysaysabouttheworldmightinfactbe
true.(C.Rovelli,THEWORLDQUESTIONCENTER2006 )
Andquantumphysicistsaremakingstartlingclaimsthatarebackedupby
undeniableevidence.
Wehavenosatisfactoryreasonforascribingobjectiveexistencetophysical
quantitiesasdistinguishedfromthenumbersobtainedwhenwemakethe
measurementswhichwecorrelatewiththem.Thereisnorealreasonfor
supposingthataparticlehasateverymomentadefinite,butunknown,
positionwhichmayberevealedbyameasurementoftherightkind...Onthe
contrary,wegetintoamazeofcontradictionassoonasweinjectinto
quantummechanicssuchconceptsascarriedoverfromthelanguageand
philosophyofourancestors...Itwouldbemoreexactifwespokeof
makingmeasurementsofthis,that,ortheothertypeinsteadofsayingthat
wemeasurethis,that,ortheotherphysicalquantity.(EdwinC.Kemble )
[W]ehavetogiveuptheideaofrealismtoafargreaterextentthanmost
physicistsbelievetoday.(AntonZeilinger )...Byrealism,hemeansthe
ideathatobjectshavespecificfeaturesandpropertiesthataballisred,
thatabookcontainstheworksofShakespeare,orthatanelectronhasa
particularspin...itmaymakenosensetothinkofthemashavingwell
definedcharacteristics.(P.Ball,Physicistsbidfarewelltoreality? )
Itisnotjustparticlesandatomsthataregovernedbyquantummechanics.
Quantummechanicsisincreasinglyappliedtolargerandlargerobjects.
Evenaonetonbarproposedtodetectgravitywavesmustbeanalysed
quantummechanically.Incosmology,awavefunctionforthewholeuniverse
iswrittentostudytheBigBang.Itgetshardertodaytononchalantlyaccept
therealminwhichthequantumrulesapplyassomehownotbeing
physicallyreal...Quantummechanicsforcesustoabandonnaverealism.
(QuantumEnigma:PhysicsEncountersConsciousness:BruceRosenblum,
FredKuttner )
Ifthereisanythingtobelearnedfromthelonghistoryofthe
epistemologicaldebate,itisthattheissueisbynomeanssimpleortrivial,
andthatwhateverisultimatelydeterminedtobethetruthofepistemology,
wecanbesurethatitwilldoconsiderableviolencetoourcommonsense
viewofthings...Inscience,irrefutableevidencetriumphsoverincredibility,
andthisisexactlywhatgivessciencethepowertodiscoverunexpectedor
incredibletruth.(StevenLehar )
Andthenthereisalsoundeniableevidencecomingfromrigorousexperiments
that"suggestthatconsciousnessitself,unaidedbyknownphysical
mechanisms,caninfluencephysicalreality.(PEAROrientation)Andthe
resultsareunlikelybychancetotheorderof10^12(oneinatrillion).
Whichismorerigorouslyproventhanmanycommonlyacceptedscientific
'facts'.(R.G.JahnandB.J.Dunne,"Thepearproposition",Journalof
ScientificExploration,vol.19,no.2,pp.195245,2005,
http://www.scientificexploration... )
TheexperimentswereconductedbythePrincetonEngineeringAnomalies
Research PEARlabfor28years,usingquantumrandomeventgenerators
(REGs ).Itwasshownthatconsciousnesscreatesafieldofambient
'coherence'thatdrivesquantumprocessesawayfromrandomnessandtowards
order.Thiscanalsobefocusedasintentionalinfluence.
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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

Clearlytheoldparadigmcannotexplainthesephenomena.Thusscienceis
forcedtoshiftawayfromanaverealist,empiricist,materialistfoundation.
Thusanewparadigmisneeded!SeethequestionWhatdotheresultsofthe
PEARGCPICRLexperimentssayaboutconsciousnessandhowcanwe
scientificallyexplainthem?andalsoNowthatnaiverealismhasbeen
disprovenbyquantummechanics,howwillthisimpactourcollective
paradigm?
2)NonNaveRealistApproach
Fromanonnaverealistperspective,oneremainsstaunchlysceptical(open
enquiry,withoutassumptionorprejudice).Whatcanbeknownforsurefrom
thisperspective?
Inrealitythereisnoperson,onlythewatcheridentifyinghimselfwiththe'I'
andthe'mine'...youarenotthis,thereisnothingofyoursinthis,exceptthe
littlepointof"Iam",whichisthebridgebetweenthewatcherandhis
dream."Iamthis,Iamthat"isdream,whilepure"Iam"hasthestampof
realityonit.(SriNisargadattaMaharaj,IamThat )
When"Iamseeingachairinfrontofme"thisisbecauseIamandthecontent
ofawarenessconsistsofperceptualformsthatthemindhascometoassociate
withtheideaofachair.Thusthereistheinterplayofsensoryexperiencesand
associative(memory)experiences.
IfIremainquietandsimplyobservethecontentsofawarenessIfindthatthere
isceaselessactivity.Ifthisactivityisidentifiedwiththenawarenessiscarried
offonsomesequenceofthoughts.Bybringingawarenessbackagaintothe
spaceofawarenessIcannoticethatduringthatsequence,Iwasnotawareof
thespaceofawareness,butonlyofthethoughts.ThusIwasnotawareofmy
self.
Icanobservethestructureofthecontentsofawarenessandnotethatsomeare
associatedwithideassuchasme,body,mind,world,chair,etc.Asan
experimentIcanthenceasebringingawarenessbackintothespaceof
awarenessandIletitbecarriedoffononesequenceofthoughtsafteranother,
identifyingwithandparticipatinginthestoryofme,body,mind,world,chair,
etc.Thisisthemostcommon"everyday"stateofmind.
DuringthisprocessIamwhollyabsorbedinthestoryofmyselfasaperson
withabodyandamind,livinginaworldandsittingonachair.Duringthis
processIamnotawareofthespaceofawarenessthe"Iam",whichistheonly
truecertainty.ThusIhavelostsightofcertaintyandenteredintoaworld
composedentirelyofidentificationswithsensoryphenomenaandmemory
associationswhichareinterpretedthroughthelensofapersoninaworld.
"Thepersonismerelytheresultofamisunderstanding.Inreality,thereisno
suchthing.Feelings,thoughtsandactionsracebeforethewatcherin
endlesssuccession,leavingtracesinthebrainandcreatinganillusionof
continuity.Areflectionofthewatcherinthemindcreatesthesenseof'I'
andthepersonacquiresanapparentlyindependentexistence.(Sri
NisargadattaMaharaj,IamThat )
Thereareotherexperimentsthatonecouldconductasone'sdegreeof
detachmentincreases,suchaskeepingawarenesswithinthespaceof
awarenesswhilstthecontentsofawarenessgothroughvariousdifferent
processes(statesofmindsuchasmoods,ideas,sleep,dreams,personalities,
etc).Inallthesecasesthecontentsofawarenesscanchangesignificantly,
howeverthespaceofawarenessremainsentirelyunchanged.Justasadigital
imageleavesnotraceonacomputerscreenafterithasgone.Allkindsof
phenomenacanplayacrossthe'screen'ofawareness,butawarenessisnot
influencedbythecontent.
"Gowithin,gobeyond.Ceasebeingfascinatedwiththecontentofyour
consciousness.Whenyoureachthedeeplayersofyourtruebeing,youwill
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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

findthatthemind'ssurfaceplayaffectsyouverylittle...Arayofawareness
illuminesapartofourmindandthatpartbecomesourdreamorwaking
consciousness,whileawarenessappearsasthewitness.Thewitnessusually
knowsonlyconsciousness.Sadhana(pathleadingtorealization)consistsin
thewitnessturningback,firstonhisconscious,thenuponhimselfinhis
ownawareness.SelfawarenessisYoga(unionwithexistence).(Sri
NisargadattaMaharaj,IamThat )
WhatIsConsciousness?
BybringingawarenessbacktothespaceofawarenessIcannowask"Whatis
consciousness?"
Whilstidentifiedwiththestoryofme,body,mind,world,chair,etcitseemed
asifconsciousnesswasthemindwithitspersonality,perception,memory,
intellect,etc.
Howeverfromtheperspectiveofawarenesswithinthespaceofawareness,I
realisethatthesearethecontentsofawarenessandthatconsciousnesshasits
rootinpureawareness,whichIam,anditunfoldsthroughmyriadcomplex
systemsofperception,memory,thought,etcintoanelaboratecognitive
memeplexthatwecallthemind.
Thishoweverisnotaformofsolipsism,becausealthoughtheonlythingthatI
amcertainofisIam,atthislevelofawarenessthereisapassagethroughto
anexpansivenessofuniversalawareness.Atthislevelofconsciousnessthereis
onlyoneconsciousness,butitsnot'mine'inasolipsistsense(theideas'me'and
'mine'arejustcontentsofawareness)itisauniversalconsciousness.
"Whenthissupercontemplativestateisreached,theYogiacquirespure
spiritualrealisationthroughthebalancedquietofthechitta(thinking
principle).Hisperceptionisnowunfailinglyexact(orhismindrevealsonly
thetruth).Thisparticularperceptionisuniqueandrevealsthatwhichthe
rationalmind(usingtestimony,inferenceanddeduction)cannotreveal.Itis
hostileto,orsupersedesallotherimpressions.Whenthisstateofperception
isitselfalsorestrained(orsuperseded)thenispureSamadhiachieved."
(SamadhiPada,4751,YogaSutrasofPatanjali )
TorecapI'llsummarisewithaquotefromtheLankavataraSutra.
"Solongaspeopledonotunderstandthetruenatureoftheobjectiveworld,
theyfallintothedualisticviewofthings.Theyimaginethemultiplicityof
externalobjectstoberealandbecomeattachedtothemandarenourished
bytheirhabitenergy.Becauseofthissystemofmentation,mindandwhat
belongstoitisdiscriminatedandisthoughtofasrealthisleadstothe
assertionofanegosoulanditsbelongings,andthusthemindsystemgoes
onfunctioning.Dependinguponandattachingitselftothedualistichabitof
mind,theyaccepttheviewsofthephilosophersfoundeduponthese
erroneousdistinctions,ofbeingandnonbeing,existenceandnonexistence,
andthereevolveswhatwecallfalseimaginations...
Falseimaginationsrisefromtheconsiderationofappearancesthingsare
discriminatedastoform,signsandshapeastohavingcolour,warmth,
humidity,mobilityorrigidity.Falseimaginationconsistsofbecoming
attachedtotheseappearancesandtheirnames...
Thefivesensefunctionsandtheirdiscriminatingandthinkingfunctionhave
theirrisingsandcompleteendingfrommomenttomoment...Bysettingup
namesandformsgreedismultipliedandthusthemindgoesonmutually
conditioningandbeingconditioned.Bybecomingattachedtonamesand
forms,notrealisingthattheyhavenomorebasisthantheactivitiesofthe
minditself,errorarises,falseimaginationastopleasureandpainarises,
andthewaytoemancipationisblocked...
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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

Bythecessationofthemindsystemasawholeismeant,thecessationof
discrimination,theclearingawayofthevariousattachments,and,therefore,
theclearingawayofthedefilementsofhabitenergyinthefaceofUniversal
Mindwhichhavebeenaccumulatingsincebeginninglesstimebyreasonof
thesediscriminations,attachments,erroneousreasonings,andfollowing
acts.GettingridofthediscriminatingmortalmindisNirvana.
Butthecessationofthediscriminatingmindcannottakeplaceuntilthere
hasbeena"turningabout"'inthedeepestseatofconsciousness.Themental
habitoflookingoutwardbythediscriminatingminduponanexternal
objectiveworldmustbegivenup,andanewhabitofrealisingTruthwithin
theintuitivemindbybecomingonewiththeTruthitselfmustbe
established...Withtheendingofpleasureandpain,ofconflictingideas,of
thedisturbinginterestsofegoism,astateoftranquillisationwillbeattained
inwhichthetruthsofemancipationwillbefullyunderstood..."
(LankavataraSutra )
Howlongwillittaketogetfreeofthediscriminatingmind?
Itmaytakeathousandyears,butreallynotimeisrequired.Allyouneedis
tobeindeadearnest.Herethewillisthedeed.Ifyouaresincere,youhave
it.Afterall,itisamatterofattitude.Nothingstopsyoufrombeingagnani
(knowerofSupremeKnowledge)hereandnow,exceptfear.Youareafraid
ofbeingimpersonal,ofimpersonalbeing.Itisallquitesimple.Turnaway
fromyourdesiresandfearsandfromthethoughtstheycreateandyouare
atonceinyournaturalstate."(SriNisargadattaMaharaj,IamThat )
Onlythenwillyoutrulyknowwhatconsciousnessis.Theanswerisnota
descriptioninwordsandideas(whicharejustthecontentofawareness)buta
processbywhichtotasteitandknowitasyourownsubjectivespaceof
awareness.Onlythenwillthequestionwhatisconsciousness?beanswered
foryou.
Onecannotjustplaywiththe'contents'ofawarenessandtherebycometoa
deepappreciationofconsciousness.Sodon'tjustlookatthesewordsandthink
aboutthem,alsoletthemdirectyourattentiontoyourselfandletthat
perspectiveinformyou.
Sowhatcanbesaidaboutconsciousness?InwordsIcansaythat
consciousnessisthegroundofbeingfromwhichallmanifestationarises.Itis
bothuniversalandpersonal,anditenlivensandanimatesallsystems,
includingthosethoughttobe'inanimate'.
Thatwhichpermeatesall,whichnothingtranscendsandwhich,likethe
universalspacearoundus,fillseverythingcompletelyfromwithinand
without,thatSupremenondualBrahmanthatthouart.(Adi
Shankara )
"Therealdoesnotdie,theunrealneverlived.Onceyouknowthatdeath
happenstothebodyandnottoyou,youjustwatchyourbodyfallingofflike
adiscardedgarment.Therealyouistimelessandbeyondbirthanddeath."
(SriNisargadattaMaharaj,IamThat )
"Whatisitthathadbirth?Whomdoyoucallahumanbeing?If,insteadof
seekingexplanationsforbirth,deathandafterdeath,thequestionisraised
astowhoandhowyouarenow,thesequestionswillnotarise...Thebodyis
bornagainandagain.Wewronglyidentifyourselveswiththebody,and
henceimaginewearereincarnatedconstantly.No.Wemustidentify
ourselveswiththetrueSelf.Therealisedoneenjoysunbrokenconsciousness,
neverbrokenbybirthordeathhowcanhedie?Onlythosewhothink'Iam
thebody'talkofreincarnation.Tothosewhoknow'IamtheSelf'thereisno
rebirth.Reincarnationsonlyexistsolongasthereisignorance.Thereisno
incarnation,eithernow,beforeorhereafter.Thisisthetruth."(Ramana
Maharshi )
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Howcanthisbescientificallyunderstood?Ausefulanalogyisvirtualreality
simulation,whereasingleanimatingsourcecreatesworldsofvirtual
phenomena,whereevolvingsentientmindsexperiencethemselvesasindividual
beingsinaworldofobjectsinspaceandtime.Theanimatingthreadthatruns
throughallsystemsistheIamawareness.Allvirtualphenomenalacka
fundamentalselfnature,theyareephemeralformswithoutpermanent
substance,theyare'sunnyata'(emptyofselfnature).Formoreonthesubject
ofsimulatedrealitysee:
JohnRingland'sanswertoTheBigPhilosophicalQuestions:IstheUniverse
aSimulation?
JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatcanbelearnedfromvideogamesthatis
hardtolearnanyotherway?
JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatissentience?
Quantummechanicsiscompatiblewiththissimulationanalogy,forexample:
ifweacceptthequantizationofspaceandtimeasabasicfactofthe
structureofouruniverse,thenwemaygoontoconsiderhowbothofthese
propertieshappentobeintrinsictotheoperationsofacomputer(Ross
Rhodes,CyberneticInterpretationofQuantumMechanics ).
AlsoseeJohnRingland'sanswertoIslightawaveoraparticle?
Bythinkingofquantummechanicsinthiswaytheseeminglyparadoxical
aspectsofquantummechanicsareseentobecommonfeaturesofinformation
processesandvirtualworlds.Forexample,thePlanckfrequency(1.859x
10^43Hz)isanalogoustotheframerateofasimulatedvirtualreality.
Wheelerlabelstheindividualquantumphenomenonanelementaryactof
creation.Weasobserversplayasignificantroleinthisprocesssincewecan
decidebychoosingthemeasuringdevicewhichquantumphenomenonis
realized.Still,wecannotinfluencethespecificvalueobtainedthroughthe
measurement.Finally,sincewearepartoftheuniverse,theuniverse,
accordingtoWheeler,createsitselfbyobservingitselfthroughus...
(Quantummechanicshas)graduallybroughttheroleoftheobserverinto
thecenterofourdiscussion,arolewhichisexpressedbyClauserinhisjoint
analysiswithShimonyofthepresentEPRBellsituationasfollows:"perhaps
anunheardtreefallingintheforestmakesnosoundafterall".(Anton
Zeilinger,OntheInterpretationandPhilosophicalFoundationofQuantum
Mechanics )
Inthisparadigmallsystemsareobserversandhaveexperientialawareness,
withoutwhichtheycouldnotinteractthisisaformofpanpsychism,in
particularpanprotoexperientialism,Russellianmonism,TypeFmonismor
Neutralmonism(GoogleRussellian"TypeF""Neutralmonism ").Theseare
theviewthatconsciousnessisconstitutedbytheintrinsicpropertiesofreality.
Onthisview,phenomenalorprotophenomenalpropertiesarelocatedat
thefundamentallevelofphysicalreality,andinacertainsense,underlie
physicalrealityitself.(TheBlackwellGuidetoPhilosophyofMind )
AlsoseeJohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisitliketobeaquantum
computationalprocess?
Howeverjustastherearedegreesofcomplexityof'outer'forms,therearealso
degreesofcomplexityof'inner'processes.Thesimplestsystemshaveonlya
simplestreamofpureawarenessbywhichtheyexperienceandinteract,they
arenotawarethattheyareaware,theyarejustaware.Howeverthenthereare
systemssuchasourselves,withextremelycomplexinternalfeedbackloops(e.g.
brains),thathavecometoknowthattheyknowthattheyknow.

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(2)JohnRingland'sanswertoWhatisconsciousness?Quora

Sowhilstthemindandpersonalityareaproductofbiosociomemetic
evolution,theinnermostawarenesswithinallsystemsistheuniversal
animatingprocess.
ForsomebriefcommentsandmanyquotesseeVirtualRealityAnalogy
AlongsideScienceandMysticism .Foradetailedphilosophical,theoretical
andmathematicaldiscussionseeTheObjectiveInformationProcess&
VirtualSubjectiveExperiencesHypothesis orjustthemathematical
aspectsSystemScienceofVirtualReality .Thisworkdevelopsfromfirst
principlesthefoundationsofamathematicalscienceofinformationsystems
andvirtualrealitysimulation.Withinthiscontextitrederivesthefoundations
ofquantummechanicsanddiscussesnaverealismandthe'hard'problemof
consciousness,whichbecomesaneasyproblemfromthisperspectivebecause
thenaverealisttendencytoignoresubjectiveexperiencefromtheoutsetis
avoidedfromtheoutset.
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