Citation
Key, Brian (2016) “Cellular basis of consciousness”: Not just radical but wrong. Animal Sentience 11(5)
Commentary Type
Invited Commentary
Thread
Arthur S. Reber, Caterpillars, consciousness and the origins of mind
Abstract
Reber (2016) attempts to resuscitate an obscure and outdated hypothesis referred to as the “cellular basis of consciousness” that was originally formulated by the author nearly twenty years ago. This hypothesis proposes that any organism with flexible cell walls, a sensitivity to its surrounds, and the capacity for locomotion will possess the biological foundations of mind and consciousness. Reber seeks to reduce consciousness to a fundamental property inherent to individual cells rather than to centralised nervous systems. This commentary shows how this hypothesis is based on supposition, false premises and a misunderstanding of evolutionary theory. The cellular basis of consciousness hypothesis has little explanatory and predictive power with regards to subjective experience.
DOI
10.51291/2377-7478.1163
Included in
Cognition and Perception Commons, Cognitive Neuroscience Commons, Ethics and Political Philosophy Commons, Evolution Commons, Philosophy of Mind Commons, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons, Zoology Commons