Colin McGinn (born 1950) is a British philosopher at Rutgers University, soon to be transferring to the University of Miami, because he wants to surf year-round (or so he told The Chronicle of Higher Education). He is primarily known for promoting the view known as New Mysterianism, which is a view in philosophy of mind that states that the human mind is fundamentally incapable of comprehending itself entirely. This is his explanation as to why we humans have had such difficulty understanding our own consciousness. McGinn's answer to the hard problem of consciousness is th ...

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Including:

Consciousness - Etymology Consciousness - Consciousness and language Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches Consciousness - Philosophical approaches
Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness Consciousness - Access consciousness
Consciousness - Physical approaches Consciousness - Spiritual approaches Consciousness - Functions of consciousness Consciousness - Tests of consciousness
Consciousness - Turing Test Consciousness - Mirror test Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience Consciousness - Philosophy Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness Consciousness - People Consciousness - Miscellaneous

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Modern investigations into and discoveries about consciousness are based on psychological statistical studies and case studies of consciousness states and the deficits caused by lesions, stroke, injury, or surgery that disrupt the normal functioning of human senses and cognition. These discoveries suggest that the mind is a complex structure derived from various localized functions that are bound together with a unitary awareness. Several studies point to common mechanisms in different clinical conditions that lead to loss of consciou ...

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Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches

Some philosophers suggest that consciousness resists or even defies definition. Others believe it can be usefully distinguished between phenomenal consciousness and access or psychological consciousness, while still others disagree. There are many philosophical stances on consciousness, including: behaviorism, dualism, idealism, functionalism, phenomenalism, physicalism, emergentism, and mysticism. John Locke's chapter XXVII "On Identity and Diversity" in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1689) has been sai ...

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Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Philosophical approaches

As there is still not a clear definition of consciousness, no empirical tests currently exist to test consciousness as a whole. Some have even argued that empirical tests of consciousness are intrinsically impossible. However, some researchers have devised tests to detect what they feel are certain aspects of consciousness. A test similar to this was used in the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick to see if a person was a robot or an actual human. In the Ridley Scott movie, Blade Runner, which was inspired by that book, it is known as th ...

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Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Tests of consciousness

Even at the dawn of Newtonian science, Leibniz and many others were suggesting physical theories of consciousness. Modern physical theories of consciousness can be divided into three types: theories to explain behaviour and access consciousness, theories to explain phenomenal consciousness and theories to explain the quantum mechanical (QM) Quantum mind. Theories that seek to explain behaviour are an everyday part of neuroscience, some of these theories of access consciousness, such as Edelman's theory, contentiously identify phenomenal cons ...

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Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Physical approaches

Some philosophers suggest that consciousness resists or even defies definition. Others believe it can be usefully distinguished between phenomenal consciousness and access or psychological consciousness, while still others disagree. There are many philosophical stances on consciousness, including: behaviorism, dualism, idealism, functionalism, phenomenalism, physicalism, emergentism, and mysticism. C ...

See also:

Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Philosophical approaches

Spiritual approaches to consciousness involve the idea of altered states of consciousness or religious experience. Changes in the state of consciousness or a religious experience can occur spontaneously or as a result of religious observance. It is also maintained by some religions and religious factions that the universe itself is consciousness. In shamanic practices, changes in states of consciousness are induced by activities that create trance states, such as drumming, dancing, fasting, sensory deprivation, exposure to extremes of ...

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Consciousness, Consciousness - Etymology, Consciousness - Consciousness and language, Consciousness - Cognitive neuroscience approaches, Consciousness - Philosophical approaches, Consciousness - Phenomenal and access consciousness, Consciousness - The description and location of phenomenal consciousness, Consciousness - Access consciousness, Consciousness - Physical approaches, Consciousness - Spiritual approaches, Consciousness - Functions of consciousness, Consciousness - Tests of consciousness, Consciousness - Turing Test, Consciousness - Mirror test, Consciousness - Cognitive Neuroscience, Consciousness - Philosophy, Consciousness - Physical Theories of Consciousness, Consciousness - People, Consciousness - Miscellaneous

Read more here: » Consciousness: Encyclopedia II - Consciousness - Spiritual approaches