Re: Evolution of consciousness

On 5/2/24 6:21 AM, Arkalen wrote:

On 30/04/2024 01:36, Mark Isaak wrote:

My views on the evolution of consciousness are starting to gel.
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1. Rudimentary nervous systems evolve.
2. Brains evolve, capable of memory and of decisions other than reflex.
3. Those decisions probably work better if the brain has a model of the world to work with. So such a model evolves.
4. Some creatures live socially. Their brains need a model of that important aspect of the world: the fellow beings one lives with, including how they think.
5. So we've now got a model of minds. How about if we apply it to *our own mind*? That might make our thinking about interactions with others' minds more efficient.
6. Viola! Consciousness!
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Does that make sense to people?  Is it time for me to write a book on the subject? (Do you think publishers will want the book to be more than 106 words long?)
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There's also the problem of testing it. I'm open to suggestions there, too. Step 4 implies that the model of how we think need not agree with how we think, much as the mental model of our world is flat, not spherical. This has at least some confirmation (e.g., blindness to many biases). More would be better.

 Have you seen my thread on Michael Tomasello's "The Evolution of Agency"? I think the book would interest you. If you want more detail I have a post somewhere in that thread summarizing its arguments, I'd be happy to hear your take.

I have seen it, but I don't remember particular points.
I just came across reference to another book by Michael S.S. Graziano, _Consciousness and the Social Brain_, which appears to make an argument similar to mine above (particularly steps 4 and 5).
--
Mark Isaak
"Wisdom begins when you discover the difference between 'That
doesn't make sense' and 'I don't understand.'" - Mary Doria Russell