The development of consciousness

[Lozzer]

There's two main most feasible models of consciousness, supposedly, or at least hypotheses on the development of human consciousness. As I'm informed, there's the Mithen and then the Dunbar model. I've read through both, and they seem relatively plausible, but if I'm not mistaken, they're really rather Lamarckist.

Both propose the view that human consciousness emerged from an activities, such as story-telling, or 'tapping' into unexplored 'areas of intelligence'.

I am heavily confused, genius please.

[Trolldor]

Consciousness evolved because those that were able to invent survived better - not limited to just tools, but reasoning and assessing situations ie predicting outcomes

Consciousness didn't evolve because we told stories. We were able to tell stories because we had a consciousness, an ability to subjectively view the world and apply value judgements.

[Ilovelucy]

I think that you'll end up in "just so story" territory wherever you go with this. The story of human evolution is still massively incomplete and no-one is on the same page regarding the philosophical and scientific definitions of consciousness. Then there's the whole issue of whether other animals are conscious.

That said, I heartily recommend Steven Mithen's "A Prehistory of the Mind", mainly because it's a damn good read.

[Chuck Jones]

Everything is conscious.

[Ilovelucy]

Everything is conscious.

What about when everything has too much to drink and needs its stomach pumped?

[Chuck Jones]

Everything is conscious.

What about when everything has too much to drink and needs its stomach pumped?

Then it pukes into your mouth and then you spit it back out onto them, while Dawkins films it and then puts it on youtube for his japanese sicko friends to wank over. It's official, folks, atheism is sick business.

[Santa_Claus]

Until the internet was invented I wasn't conscious that I found lesbian's vomiting into each others mouths sexually stimulating.

not sure of the evolutionary purpose of that............

[Ilovelucy]

Everything is conscious.

What about when everything has too much to drink and needs its stomach pumped?

Then it pukes into your mouth and then you spit it back out onto them, while Dawkins films it and then puts it on youtube for his japanese sicko friends to wank over. It's official, folks, atheism is sick business.

He puked it up because he realised that it was the Holy Spirit instead of Gin. Holy Spirit is like fluffy spunk from god's cock after he's fucked his son in the hand holes.

[Chuck Jones]

Wow, if I was a christian I'd be pretty offended by that. By the way, atheism is a faith.

[Ilovelucy]

Wow, if I was a christian I'd be pretty offended by that. By the way, atheism is a faith.

If I was a Dawkins stalker I'd have been offended by your comment. By the way, atheism is a biscuit.

[Atheist-Lite]

Conciousness appears to be a spooky one. I suggest it doesn't exist. What doesn't exist does not require a explanation. We'll all be dead a lot longer than we're alive so this irritating qualia whose definition is undefined, merely to be experienced, will vanish over the long run. Over the full and complete stretch of time and space it is safe to say we were never conscious, perhaps never even here?

[Ilovelucy]

Conciousness appears to be a spooky one. I suggest it doesn't exist. What doesn't exist does not require a explanation. We'll all be dead a lot longer than we're alive so this irritating qualia whose definition is undefined, merely to be experienced, will vanish over the long run. Over the full and complete stretch of time and space it is safe to say we were never conscious, perhaps never even here?

And yet, everything we know is through it. We have to be conscious of something before we can acknowledge it. After all doesn't science, and all the lofty facts that belittle our human existence, still rely on empiricism? Why is it so important that we must go to so much effort to generate the Higgs Bosun and record its actual existence within the bounds of our experience when we could just be happy with the maths and theory?

[Atheist-Lite]

Conciousness appears to be a spooky one. I suggest it doesn't exist. What doesn't exist does not require a explanation. We'll all be dead a lot longer than we're alive so this irritating qualia whose definition is undefined, merely to be experienced, will vanish over the long run. Over the full and complete stretch of time and space it is safe to say we were never conscious, perhaps never even here?

And yet, everything we know is through it. We have to be conscious of something before we can acknowledge it. After all doesn't science, and all the lofty facts that belittle our human existence, still rely on empiricism? Why is it so important that we must go to so much effort to generate the Higgs Bosun and record its actual existence within the bounds of our experience when we could just be happy with the maths and theory?

It doesn't matter. We all die and everything is forgotten. Nothing remains in time. Why should it matter? A ant carries a leaf to the nest and it's pinhead brain might experience qualia, conciousness, of somekind. It'll die and be forgotten. The leaf too in time will have no meaning for the ant colony. The earth burns one day, and there are no more ants. The end.

[Ilovelucy]

Conciousness appears to be a spooky one. I suggest it doesn't exist. What doesn't exist does not require a explanation. We'll all be dead a lot longer than we're alive so this irritating qualia whose definition is undefined, merely to be experienced, will vanish over the long run. Over the full and complete stretch of time and space it is safe to say we were never conscious, perhaps never even here?

And yet, everything we know is through it. We have to be conscious of something before we can acknowledge it. After all doesn't science, and all the lofty facts that belittle our human existence, still rely on empiricism? Why is it so important that we must go to so much effort to generate the Higgs Bosun and record its actual existence within the bounds of our experience when we could just be happy with the maths and theory?

It doesn't matter. We all die and everything is forgotten. Nothing remains in time. Why should it matter? A ant carries a leaf to the nest and it's pinhead brain might experience qualia, conciousness, of somekind. It'll die and be forgotten. The leaf too in time will have no meaning for the ant colony. The earth burns one day, and there are no more ants. The end.

Do you do children's parties?

[mistermack]

Devogay, you use the word consciousness, but you seem to be talking about self awareness. Which do you actually mean?