Abstract
One of the biggest queries in cognitive sciences is the emergence of consciousness from matter. Modern neurobiological theories of consciousness propose that conscious experience is the result of interactions between large-scale neuronal networks in the brain, traditionally described within the realm of classical physics. Here, we propose a generalized connectionist framework in which the emergence of “conscious networks” is not exclusive of large brain areas, but can be identified in subcellular networks exhibiting nontrivial quantum phenomena. The essential feature of such networks is the existence of strong correlations in the system (classical or quantum coherence) and the presence of an optimal point at which the system’s complexity and energy dissipation are maximized, whereas free-energy is minimized. This is expressed either by maximization of the information content in large scale functional networks or by achieving optimal efficiency through the quantum Goldilock effect.
Highlights
The relation between behavior and brain function is the main task of cognitive neuroscience.In particular, one of the biggest queries in cognitive sciences and philosophy is the emergence of consciousness from matter [1,2]
Of crucial importance in the current context, the gamma band activity has been associated with high cognitive functions, including consciousness; the generation of gamma activity may be a consequence of the natural activity of neurons during conscious experience: gamma frequencies reflect the emergence and dissolution of communication among many neuronal ensembles, fluctuations providing the variability needed in brain dynamics to process information leading to adaptive behaviors [35]
What is the size of the smallest illuminated spots, the building blocks in the Cartesian theater of consciousness mentioned above? We have identified fundamental principles common to theories of consciousness, both classical and quantum
Summary
The relation between behavior and brain function is the main task of cognitive neuroscience. One possible answer could be that consciousness does not reside within any specific structure and that it cannot be clearly associated with a particular spatial scale. We address the possibility that conscious phenomena can result from, or at least be enhanced by, non-trivial quantum effects. Several authors have proposed during the course of the last few decades, the possibility that consciousness could arise as a result of non-trivial quantum mechanical processes, such as quantum coherence and entanglement (for a magnificent recent review see in [12]). We propose the hypothesis that consciousness is a multiscale phenomenon that could appear both as a result of large-scale interactions in neural networks or due to non-trivial quantum phenomena within cells
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