Approaches to Consciousness Part II

Dialogue 26|Session 18

Approaches to Consciousness Part II

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Overview

Consciousness can be studied from many positions within both science and philosophy. This explored research on consciousness in the brain, theoretical models of consciousness in cognitive science, as well as neurophenomenological investigations and Buddhist views on consciousness. Christof Koch introduced a brain-focused approach to consciousness, and outlined the differences between states of consciousness (awake, deep sleep, coma), what we know about the neural basis of consciousness in human and non-human animals, and how these are studied in the laboratory and the clinic. Rajesh Kasturirangan discussed a theoretical cognitive model of consciousness by introducing the “self as organizer” presupposition as a bridging framework between the various Indian philosophical traditions and the mind-brain sciences. Michel Bitbol discussed consciousness from a phenomenological standpoint, challenging the view that conscious experience derives from a material basis.

  • Dialogue 26
    27 sessions
  • January 20, 2013
    Drepung Monastery, Mundgod, India
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Speakers

Rajesh Kasturirangan

Rajesh Kasturirangan, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore and the Anchor of the Cognition Programme. Rajesh holds two PhDs, one in Cognitive Science from MIT and another in Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. From 2005 to 2006 he was a research scientist for the Department of Brain and Cognitive Science at MIT. He is an editorial columnist for India Together magazine and the author of numerous published articles and technical reports. He is particularly interested in understanding how organisms are embedded in the world, i.e., how they grasp regularities, extract energy and information, respond appropriately to environmental stimuli and further their well-being, and he brings a cross-disciplinary approach to these questions that combines Indian and Western philosophy, cognitive science, mathematical modeling and the study of several non-human species.

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