What Creates Consciousness?

Renowned researchers David Chalmers and Anil Seth join Brian Greene to explore how far science and philosophy have gone toward explaining the greatest of all mysteries, consciousness--and whether artificially intelligent systems may one day possess it.

This program is part of the Big Ideas series, supported by the John Templeton Foundation.

Participants:
David Chalmers
Anil Seth

Moderator:
Brian Greene

00:00 - Introduction
02:35 - Participant Introductions
03:50 - Will an Artificial System Ever Become Conscious?
05:32 - The Hard Problem of Consciousness
08:32 - Thought Experiment: Mary and the Nature of Conscious Experience
13:28 - The Hard Problem and The Real Problem of Consciousness
21:53 - The Brain as a Prediction Machine
25:41 - Possible Solutions to the Hard Problem
33:15 - Will AI Systems Become Conscious and How Will We Know?
40:11 - Is Human Consciousness the Only One Example of Conscious-like Experience?
42:19 - The Future of Creating Consciousness and the Ethical Questions
44:39 - Credits

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[hn]

Interviewing is becoming a fine art. Brian is superb here. Compare with what was broadcast even ten years ago, were are in a golden age

[sunshine]

Great conversation. David Chalmers is at his imaginative best, giving us hope and optimism. Anil Seth is at his objective best, giving us a glimpse of reality by calling a spade a spade. Brian Greene is at his explorative best, as always.
Well, after writing these comments, I do feel that I am conscious 😂

[mikaelfiil]

Brian Green is an amazing host, well prepared, to the point, respectfull etc.

[knowledgetreasury]

I have been following my 20 years of reading and teaching as part of the syllabus for 'Religion and Science '. My study includes Brien Green for cosmology, David and Anil in my study of consciousness.
This video is a valid resource. Thank you. 0:07

[dietrichbilger]

Loved this! So far I had experienced each of these individuals presenting, interviewing in their own fields. Great to see and listen to them bunched together in conversation, combining thereby their backgrounds into something refreshing new, perhaps evolving view of things, or becoming aware and concious of!

[SardonicBass]

Everyone here acting like Chalmers is some crazy person needs a reality check. He is one of the most influential philosophers of all time, and Anil even said at the start that his field has largely been defined by Chalmers ideas.

[audiodead]

p.s. I think useful lines of enquiry are around the 'meta-problem' of consciousness (i.e. the problem of explaining why we think that there is a problem). Daniel Dennett and David Chalmers have both written useful stuff on the meta problem.

[vslabs-za]

Love this type conversations that challenges and expands my understanding and knowledge. Anil especially expanded my understanding - or perhaps, my biases. We, as a species, are facing evermore complexity in trying to understand "this" <gesturing at the universe around us>.

[timb]

The most notable thing about this whole...issue...is how much we simply do NOT know about what we are. We essentially don't have a clue what consciousness is...or how it is created. And yet...at the very same time...we seem to 'know' far more than enough to do everything we are doing right now.

[egbun]

Brian Greene does an outstanding job moderating this discussion. Kept it moving, kept it interesting. As someone without the historical background I would have liked to hear more description of the top current theories of consciousness, not oniy the "predictive" theory which didn’t feel right to me.

[dwivedys]

Excellent moderation Brian! You’ve shown immense nuance and deliberate moderation technique to showcase how such difficult conversations can be held with two of the (arguably) greatest minds we have at present in the field of consciousness - David and Anil. Looking forward to more

My personal view is that the day the AI systems are able to self bootstrap and say today im not feeling well and not answer any of your questions is the day i would accept that machines have finally achieved “human-like-consciousness”; until that happens - i would not

[williampoppa]

“Consciousness is that in which all things appear.
Consciousness is that with which all things are known.
Consciousness is that out of which all things arise.”
~ Rupert Spira

This particular definition is provisional and parallels the quantum field theory. When each declared, “I am conscious, ” it was a declaration of the one shared consciousness and the most accurate description of a unified reality.

“If I speak, I lie. If I remain silent, I am a coward.”
~ Zen Master

“Science is imagination in a straitjacket.”
~ Richard Feynman

[integralintelligence]

Creation is nothing but a product being a result of consciousness itself; descending energy. (Prof. Wilfred Leonard Bastiani)

[Thomas-sbxh]

Damn, This is what I call a discussion at the highest level in terms of content. Three brilliant guys have great respect for each other talking about one of the most fundamental problems in science. Great style, elegance and wit.

[omarelmaghat]

This insight emphasizes the need for interdisciplinary approaches combining technology, neuroscience, philosophy, and ethics to navigate the implications of AI in our understanding of consciousness

[brahmastra]

"Some look at the consciousness(soul) as amazing, some hear of it as amazing, while others, even after hearing about it, cannot fully understand it." Bhagavad Geeta!

[punuchatterjee]

The presence of Swami Sarvapriyananda would have definitely added a new Spark into the paradigm and a more comprehensive approach into the question of consciousness, especially in the light of Buddhism and Advaita Vedanta.

[Youtube_Summarizer]

Here are the key points and the important details of this video, created by @Youtube_Summarizer

Key Points：
1. [Key Point 1]: AI may never be conscious, but it's possible for machines to be.
2. [Key Point 2]: Consciousness is a mystery, but it's essential for life.
3. [Key Point 3]: Ethical considerations are crucial if AI becomes conscious.
Important Details:
Here's the timeline, created by @Youtube_Summarizer
00:00:02 Introduction to Consciousness and AI
• Host introduces the topic of consciousness in AI.
• Host questions if AI can be conscious and discusses the mystery of consciousness.
00:02:28 Guest Introductions and Initial Thoughts on AI Consciousness
• Host introduces guests David Chalmers and Anil Seth.
• Guests share their views on AI's potential for consciousness.
00:05:36 The Hard Problem of Consciousness
• Host explains the hard problem of consciousness.
• Guests discuss the gap between objective knowledge and subjective experience.
00:08:33 Mary's Room Thought Experiment
• Host presents Mary's Room thought experiment.
• Guests discuss the implications of the experiment for consciousness.
00:13:22 Biological Mechanisms and Consciousness
• Host asks about the role of biological mechanisms in consciousness.
• Guests discuss the importance of evolutionary history and biology.
00:15:06 The Prediction Machine Theory
• Host introduces the prediction machine theory.
• Guests discuss the role of predictions in consciousness.
00:20:58 The Mapping Problem and Theories of Consciousness
• Host discusses the mapping problem and theories of consciousness.
• Guests share their preferred theories and the challenges they face.
00:33:07 AI and Consciousness
• Host asks about the possibility of AI being conscious.
• Guests discuss the ethical implications of AI consciousness.
00:41:25 Emerging Technologies and Ethical Considerations
• Host discusses emerging technologies like brain organoids.
• Guests emphasize the importance of considering the ethical implications of consciousness.

We hope this summary helps you better understand the video content! If you have other videos that need to be summarized, please visit @Youtube_Summarizer

[johnjoseph]

absolutely brilliant conversation. thank you

[janelubenskyi]

It seems reasonable to think that there is no cut off to specify the “exact point” at which consciousness is suddenly created. Rather it may be that consciousness is a smooth transition which grows with increasing complexity and in parallel to entanglement of energy and the increasing complexity of matter. Consciousness evolves as all else in the universe.