Using category theory to assess the relationship between consciousness and integrated information theory
Using category theory to assess the relationship between consciousness and integrated information theory
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DOI：
10.1016/j.neures.2015.12.007
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发表时间：
2016-06-01
影响因子：
2.9
通讯作者：
Saigo, Hayato
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Tsuchiya, Naotsugu;Taguchi, Shigeru;Saigo, Hayato
科学中最神秘的现象之一是意识体验的本质。由于其主观性，还原论方法很难解决有关意识的一些基本问题。这些问题由最近发展的理论框架（称为意识综合信息论（IIT））直接定量地解决。特别是，IIT 提出最大不可约概念结构（MICS）与意识体验相同。然而，还没有原则性的方法来评估所声称的身份。在这里，我们建议应用数学形式主义、范畴论来评估所提出的同一性，并建议考虑意识经验领域与多指标类集调查领域之间是否存在适当的转换非常重要。如果存在这样的翻译，我们假设一个领域中的问题可以在另一个领域中得到解答；意识领域中非常困难的问题可以在数学领域中得到解决。我们声称，通过结合使用神经科学和计算方法，可以凭经验测试这样的函子是否存在。我们的一般性、原则性和经验性框架使我们能够评估意识领域和数学结构领域之间的关系，包括印度理工学院提出的那些关系。 (C) 2015 年作者。由爱思唯尔爱尔兰有限公司出版
One of the most mysterious phenomena in science is the nature of conscious experience. Due to its subjective nature, a reductionist approach is having a hard time in addressing some fundamental questions about consciousness. These questions are squarely and quantitatively tackled by a recently developed theoretical framework, called integrated information theory (IIT) of consciousness. In particular, IIT proposes that a maximally irreducible conceptual structure (MICS) is identical to conscious experience. However, there has been no principled way to assess the claimed identity. Here, we propose to apply a mathematical formalism, category theory, to assess the proposed identity and suggest that it is important to consider if there exists a proper translation between the domain of conscious experience and that of the MICS. If such translation exists, we postulate that questions in one domain can be answered in the other domain; very difficult questions in the domain of consciousness can be resolved in the domain of mathematics. We claim that it is possible to empirically test if such a functor exists, by using a combination of neuroscientific and computational approaches. Our general, principled and empirical framework allows us to assess the relationship between the domain of consciousness and the domain of mathematical structures, including those suggested by IIT. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.