[mellavora]

Why assume a consciousness requires a brain?

Why assume consciousness is necessarily linked and/or only a property of isolated individuals (vs a community, possibly multi-species)?

Do we define consciousness as awareness of 1 the general environment, 2 of the self as a distinct part of that environment, 3 of the (Freudian) ego as the self?

note that 2 & 3 especially make some pretty strong assumptions-- is it possible to separate something from environment (consider the impact of your microbiome), & for #3, is a person who has temporarily suspended ego (meditation, high-flow state, psychedelic drugs) conscious?

Former brain scientist speaking.

[nextaccountic]

We have some evidence that our own consciousness is specially linked to our brains, because brain alterations can alter it in a way that modifying other body parts don't. For example, removing a foot vs removing a portion of my brain will have different impacts on my mind.

So, it seems I'm a brain mostly (or a nervous system?), or at least it seems it's my brain that is talking to you. The question is: are my feet conscious too?

What if it looks like I'm a brain because only the brain can talk?

Regarding the consciousness of multi-organisms: we are like a colony of many cells already! So it's possible that a group of humans may share consciousness somehow (but this seems different than my own, personal consciousness).

Likewise, we use our environment as an extension of our minds, or at least, spiders do[0]. Perhaps that's what the rest of our bodies is for our brain: just part of the environment.

I took a couple of neuroscience classes.

[0] https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24532680-900-spiders-...

[teekert]

Because consciousness itself degrades as the brain degrades? In more or less Predictable ways even.

[nicoburns]

Human consciousness does. But we have no idea which other things in our environment are conscious. We can't directly observe even other humans' consciousness.

[teekert]

Absence of evidence is evidence of absence ;)

[joseluis]

a radio also can malfunction and stop making sounds but that doesn't mean the transmission has stopped elsewhere.