1 Strategies for giving rise to consciousness
1 Strategies for giving rise to consciousness
(A digression) What can be done in a positive and productive direction about the investigation of consciousness
Strategies for giving rise to consciousness
《 (A digression) What can be done in a positive and productive direction about the investigation of consciousness 》
1) It is impossible to directly demonstrate energy
2) The formation of physical order in substances or living things is not fulfilled without the work of consciousness
3) A living thing acts based on the work of its consciousness
4) Physical order is common on Earth
5) It's rational that the formation of advanced physical order needs the work of consciousness
6) The formation of advanced physical order needs positive foundations
7) Generally, physical order is large
8) Integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness across a myriad of substances do not come for nothing
9) What are necessary for the formation of advanced physical order
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1) It is impossible to directly demonstrate energy
It seems impossible to objectively and directly demonstrate energy.
According to the Big Bang theory, energy has no volume and is evaluated as non-material. And it is invisible. In other words, energy is not a substance.
For this reason, it is no wonder that energy cannot be objectively and directly demonstrated. That's rather reasonable. (After all, it has no volume and is non-material).
In other words, there are things in reality that exist but cannot be directly verified, and whose existence (or occurrence) can only be inferred indirectly through the occurrence of some physical phenomenon.(First of all, energy falls into this category).
2) The formation of physical order in substances or living things is not fulfilled without the work of consciousness
It is presumed that consciousness can never be observed objectly. What can be done about consciousness is, at the most, to hunt down it in the direction that the formation of advanced physical order in substances or living things can never be fulfilled without the work (= information gathering about the situation of substances / designing / thinking) of consciousness (= Intellect). This is because the only thing that can be physically observed with respect to consciousness is the formation of external physical order. (It is strongly conjectured that advanced physical order is by no means formed unless it bases on the ideational work of consciousness).
3) A living thing acts based on the work of its consciousness
The fact that one's own self (me) lives (acts) based on the work --information gathering / designing / thinking-- of its consciousness is an obvious fact (to oneself). And, almost all activities of living things fall under the formation of advanced physical order. (By the way, in the autonomic organs of animals, their work must be controlled by consciousness that emerges in them).
4) Physical order is common on Earth
By the way, moreover, advanced physical order is common on Earth. For example, from snow crystals down, exquisite crystalline masses of various substances --a lot of substances crystallize-- and morphologically advanced tissues (shapes) in various living bodies come under that. Including plants, even the activities of living things fall under the formation of advanced and dynamic physical order. The activities of living things are basically coherent, and that is the formation of extremely advanced and dynamic physical order.
5) It's rational that the formation of advanced physical order needs the work of consciousness
However, it seems to be difficult for the fact that the formation of advanced physical order needs the work of consciousness to be proven nor demonstrated. However, still, that's rational.
6) The formation of advanced physical order needs positive foundations
First, because of the tough second law of thermodynamics --entropy increases. physical order collapses. things naturally get disorderly with the lapse of time. more advanced physical order can never be formed naturally without some foundations)--, the formation of advanced physical order at substances or living things needs positive foundations.
7) Generally, physical order is large
Second, generally, physical order is large. And, largeness means that the order is formed from many (innumerable) substances (quanta).
8) Integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness across a myriad of substances do not come for nothing
However, in the external (macroscopic / material) level of substances where physical order is formed, throughout the whole of innumerable substances, there is not what can bring integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness as a single large order with coherence to it.
Matter is, externally, perfectly a third-person object and perfectly inert. (Matter can move externally for the first time when it is passively involved in some kinetic interactions). For this reason, no matter how many such things have gathered around innumerably, that's exactly nothing but a single (perfectly inert) aggregate consisted of innumerable substances. What can bring integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness to it doesn't exist --or, emerge-- in the external side of itself.
9) What are necessary for the formation of advanced physical order
The following three things are necessary.
A) (ideational) information gathering about the material state and situation of innumerable substances that exist at the place
B) (ideational) designing of physical order, based on the gathered information
C) (external and cooperative) spatial locomotion and rotation of innumerable substances, based on the designing
Advanced physical order will never be formed naturally unless these three requirements are satisfied.
In other words, in addition to the material movement of component substances, ideational work that can bring integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness as a single physical order to the order to be formed is also indispensable for the formation of physical order that is essentially large (huge). (What can bring integratedness, comprehensiveness, and cooperativeness as a single physical order to the order to be formed is only large and ideational work. No matter how highly it is organized, an aggregate of substances that are just third-person objects cannot design integrate physical order. There is no subject that can fulfill the ideational function of designing at the external side of the aggregate).
And, what can fulfill the ideoigical owrk of (large) information gathering of A) and the (large) designing of B) is only Intellect. (By the way, Intellect also must essentially be large. And, what can be large Intellect is only consciousness (that is large as expected).
However, there is a serious problem in spatial locomotion and rotation of C). (Or, it is an important issue that can extend the field of vision of physics, if we think positively). This is because they are external movement, and the external (macroscopic) movement of substances is ruled by kinetic interactions. That is to say, it is strongly inferred that the movement of substances in the formation of advanced physical order at substances and living things violates those interactions in appearance. However, since interactions work externally (macroscopically) between plural substances, it is expected that it doesn't necessarily violate if the space where substances that form the order exist is microscopic (internal).
《 Strategies for giving rise to consciousness 》
1) The elusiveness and peculiarity of consciousness
2) The obviousness of our subjective consciousness
3) One's own consciousness and consciousness of others
4) Recognition and judgement by one's own consciousness, and objectivity
5) Only the report by our subjective consciousness seems possible to be relied upon to investigate consciousness
6) The cource of action for giving rise to consciousness
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1) The elusiveness and peculiarity of consciousness
As a subjective or empirical impression, consciousness is elusive. Moreover, it seems to be intangible and impalpable. And, it is guessed to be difficult or impossible to observe or measure --take hold of consciousness itself-- by ordinary physical means. For this reason, it should not be possible to judge whether or not others are really provided with consciousness.
Furthermore, probably, consciousness feels like the ordinary laws of physics do not apply to. It's curious that the laws of physics do not apply.
However, for these reasons, it's presumed that the existential aspect of consciousness should be extremely peculiar.
2) The obviousness of our subjective consciousness
On the other hand, our subjective consciousness is self-evident and certain for each of us, and definitely judged to be present (emerge) (while we are awake). Our subjective consciousness doesn't become objective evidence, but it's an undeniable subjective and immediate fact for one's own self.
d'Alembert, a French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher, expressed the following.
Nothing is more incontestable than the existence of our sensations.
And, all our activities base on (the informarion gathering, thinking, and judgement by) the consciousness.
In other words, as to the observation of consciousness, to objectively observe consciousness itself of others seems to be almost impossible, but only one's own subjective consciousness can barely be (qualitatively) observed to some extent oneself. (Very roughly, that can also be observed quantitatively).
What are related to one's own subjective consciounsess, such as subject, subjective consciousness, the five senses, bodily sensation, thoughts, sensing, thinking, cognizing, ideas, Intellect, etc. are, so to speak, immediate values unnecessary to be demonstrated, and can be observed, judged, and investigated at least by one's own self. We are very illusionary, but, still, only self-observation, judgement, investigation, etc. by the subjective consciousness of each of us is possible.
3) One's own consciousness and consciousness of others
And, to me, at the least, things I recognize by myself about my own consciousness are facts that are undeniable and no longer need to be demonstrated further.
On the other hand, whatever others express about their consciousness, the truth of it can never be judged.
Such situation cannot be helped. That's what consciousness is. However, only things about one's own consciousness can be true only to oneself.
4) Recognition and judgement by one's own consciousness, and objectivity
However, if a person cannot admit the perception or judgement by his own subjective consciousness himself, it's all over now. Everything becomes meaningless.
Physically observed or measured results and general evidence are external. It is characteristic of objective things that they are external and that the perception about them can be shared with others.
On the other hand, things about consciousness are internal. A subjective perception of one's consciousness can never be shared with others.
However, everything, external evidence or internal things, is perceived and judged finally by the first-person subject of our consciousness.
However, it's probably impossible to demonstrate things about our (subjective) consciousness --demonstrate that one's own self has subjective consciousness, one's own self is subjective consciousness, the perception or judgement by one's own self is not illusionary but true, etc.--. That is to say, the consciousness that finally percepts and judges and the perception or judgement by the consciousness cannot be demonstrated to others fundamentally and are decisively uncertain for others.
In a word, after all, since the consciousness at the end of perception or judgement cannot be demonstrated to others, even the objective perception or judgement about external things by our subjective consciousnes is also uncertain actually.
For this reason, whatever evidence it is, the perception of the evidence that should be objective cannot always be evidence for others, while it is evidence for one's own self. Objectivity has such implicit restriction.
However, it's obvious that the essence of one's own self is consciousness, and it doesn't need to be expressly demonstrated. Even though one's own subjective consciousness is an internal event that cannot be shared with or demonstrated to others, the fact that it exists as something that arises and disappears over the course of time and as something that can perceive ideas such as bodily sensations and thoughts is a certain and immediate fact (evidence) for one's own self.
And, it seems that the fact that objectivity about external things is accepted commonly is because the fact that others also have consciousness and surely percept and judge things as well as one's own self is a tacit premise. Though indemonstratable, we have no choice but to live on this premise.
This can be said to be like a principle, axiom, or consensus. Even physical objectivity is actually on such premise.
Thereby, though consciousness is indemonstratable to others, we cannot help investigating consciousness trusting one's own subjective consciousness and relying on it.
5) Only the report by our subjective consciousness seems possible to be relied upon to investigate consciousness
And, the report by the subjective consciousness about itself, (though it can never be demonstrated objectly --i.e., though the truth of the report can ultimately never be judged by others--), is very useful in practice. Otherwise, studies such as neurology, anesthesiology, medical science, psychiatry, psychology, and brain science will not hold.
In the first place, it's not that everything can be observed objectively. In reality, there are many things which cannot be observed objectively. (Not the traces left as results of the work of internal actions, but the internal actions themselves essentially inherent in matter such as the action itself of the radiation of Gauge bosons, kinetic interactions themselves, the fundamental interactions themselves, the action itself of the thermal radiation, etc. and consciousness are the fine examples. It seems impossible to take hold of the action itself or consciousness itself). Even objectively observed results are but ones which are obtained as results --morphological traces, static physical properties, scalars-- of the work of internal actions inherent in matter.
And, even what is considered to be objective observation is judged finally by our subjective consciousness after passing through the data conversion at observation media (such as light and sound), sensory organs, the nervous system, and the brain, at great length. And, if the observation media on the way and our subjective consciousness are not credible, even objective observation will become untrustworthy.
For these reasons, only the report by our subjective consciousness seems possible to be relied upon to investigate consciousness. The true identity of consciousness, the mechanism of consciousness emergence, and so on can only be surmised from various features, clues, etc. that are judged by our own subjective consciousness, basing on the subjective consciousness and trusting it.
However, regardless of the distinction between living things and inanimate objects, various morphologically advanced physical order is formed on Earth, and they can be observed. However, it is surmised to be difficult that the formation of them is fulfilled only by the material properties of constituents and the physical situation of the place. And, it seems that the integrate, comprehensive, and ideational work --information gathering / designing / thinking-- by the large (material system) ingelligence (= (material system) consciousness) is indispensable for the formation of them. In the light of rationality, that seems almost certain, but these things also seem to be difficult to demonstrate. (For instance, in crystallography, the structure of various crystals seems to be elucidated in detail, but it seems that no answer has yet been given as to whether or not they can be formed solely by material and physical factors). Especially, Intellect --supposing it emerges actually-- and its work cannot fundamentally be observed. Therefore, it cannot be objectively judged whether or not Intellect participates in the formation of advanced physical order. We are in difficulty.
6) The cource of action for giving rise to consciousness
Still, it seems good to investigate consciousness if the following will be done.
a) Collect features, clues, etc. about consciousness as much as possible.
b) Figure a possible physical aspect of consciousness basing on the collected features and so on.
c) Search for natural scientific things which are likely to realize such a consciousness as much as possible.
d) Form a framework through which consciousness is likely to emerge by combining the things serched for.
e) Explain that what is expected to emerge is consciousness. Explain as much as possible the inference that mentality appears inside what emerges.
Although it's not clear whether what emerges is consciousness or not, the work of steps a) to d) is within the scope of physics (natural sciences).
However, the emergence of mentality in step e) is the foremost line where consciousness exactly slips out of hands of physics. (In the first place, consciousness is intangible and unobservable). So, the work of step e) seems difficult, but, from the physical characteristics, etc. of what is expected to emerge in step d), it may be possible to surmise something somewhat.
