Category theory in consciousness science: going beyond the correlational project.

We discuss the potential of applying category theory to the study of consciousness. We first review a recent proposal from the neurosciences of consciousness to illustrate the “correlational project”, using the integrated information theory of consciousness as an example. We then discuss some techni...

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Publicado en:Synthese Vol. 204; no. 2; pp. 1 - 21
Autor principal: Prentner, Robert
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Springer Nature Aug2024
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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        atl: Category theory in consciousness science: going beyond the correlational project.
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        au: Prentner, Robert
        affil:
          Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy, LMU Munich, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539, Munich, Germany
          https://ror.org/030bhh786 Institute of Humanities, ShanghaiTech University, No. 393 Middle Huaxia Road, 201210, Shanghai, China
          Association for Mathematical Consciousness Science, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539, Munich, Germany
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        Category theory
        Conscious AI
        Explanatory dualities
        Integrated information theory
        Mathematized phenomenology
        Neural correlates of consciousness
        Theory-integration
      ab: We discuss the potential of applying category theory to the study of consciousness. We first review a recent proposal from the neurosciences of consciousness to illustrate the “correlational project”, using the integrated information theory of consciousness as an example. We then discuss some technical preliminaries related to categories and in particular to the notion of a functor, which carries the bulk of conceptual weight in many current discussions. We then look at possible payoffs of this project—getting to grips with the hard problem, theory integration, and exploiting explanatory dualities—and discuss possible avenues for further research, stressing the need to better develop the categorical representation of consciousness, in particular its phenomenological structure. A better understanding of consciousness cannot be achieved by merely studying the physical brain. By contrast, the categorical treatment even suggests application beyond the domain of neuroscience, for example in computer science and artificial intelligence research, while also emphasizing the primacy of (phenomenal) experience.
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    language: English
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