What is consciousness? Can we humans actually replicate consciousness – are we able to devise intelligent, autonomous entities or “beings,” whose level of intelligence surpasses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the point that this intelligence equals or even rivals “Natural” Intelligence (NI)? In fact, is it even possible for us humans to replicate NI without us first of all replicating consciousness – i.e., is consciousness so fundamental to and intertwined with the being, orchestration or replication of NI, such that the replication of consciousness is a prerequisite and precursor to the replication of NI? Is it even possible for entities or “beings” of a certain level of consciousness and intelligence to, by creating entities or “beings” of the same level of consciousness and/or intelligence as theirs, orchestrate or replicate consciousness and/or intelligence of the same level as theirs? Is it even useful/profitable/beneficial for us humans to orchestrate or replicate consciousness and/or intelligence of the same level as ours?

I posit that the answers to the foregoing questions will need to be answered before we humans will be able to both successfully and usefully create any device, system, entity or being with the same consciousness and/or of the same level of intelligence as ours. Especially because I am someone who is not an expert in any of the disciplines – these disciplines range from neuroscience to AI – whose mastery is required for answering the foregoing questions and tackling the inherent problems generated by these questions, I have no pretentions to being someone that has the answers to the questions or the solutions to the problems. This short blog simply merely presents or expresses my contemplation and opinion on these questions and problems. Figure 1 below shows the midline structures in the brainstem and thalamus; Wikipedia (2014) explains that these structures, which are responsible for consciousness to some extent, at least, are necessary to regulate levels of brain arousal.

Source: Wikipedia (2014)

Figure 1: Midline Structures in the Brainstem and Thalamus

For a start, we humans do not really understand what consciousness is – researchers, including neuroscientists, psychologists, etc., do not fully understand what this intangible, non-concrete, ethereal characteristic of humans and other animals is. This fact, i.e., that we humans do not understand the nature of consciousness to the point that we are able to furnish a sound, clear and simple definition for this reality, plus a conjecture that I advance, make me to posit that we humans are actually unable to replicate consciousness as well as raise the level of AI to the point that it equals, rivals or surpasses that of NI; the following is the aforementioned conjecture: Entities or “beings” of a certain level of consciousness and intelligence are unable to, by creating entities or “beings” of the same level of consciousness and/or intelligence as theirs, orchestrate or replicate consciousness and/or intelligence of the same level as theirs. Furthermore, I opine that consciousness is so fundamental to and intertwined with the being, orchestration or replication of NI, such that the replication of consciousness is a prerequisite and precursor to the replication of NI.

Regarding the question of the utility, to us humans at least, of us orchestrating or replicating ("from scratch") consciousness and/or intelligence of the same level as ours, my opinion is that our accomplishment of this feat maybe unnecessary; after all, we humans are already able, to some extent, to “create” entities or “beings” of the same level of consciousness and intelligence as ours – we are able to do this by simply procreating or reproducing those of our kind! If a reason we advance (for our need to orchestrate or replicate, especially, consciousness of the same level as ours, from scratch) is that we make autonomous/robotic entities so that they can be employed to accomplish tasks that are either difficult or impossible for us humans to perform then a question we need to answer is whether or not we actually need our autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as conscious as we humans (and other animals) are – it is understandable if we need or desire our autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as intelligent as we humans (and other animals) are, but it is another matter whether or not we actually also need these autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as conscious as we humans (and other animals) are.

Having presented the point or argument advanced in the preceding paragraph, it is useful to also note that, if the replication of consciousness is a prerequisite and precursor to the replication of NI, then we will actually need our autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as conscious as we humans (and other animals) are, even if we think that we only need or desire these autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as intelligent as we humans (and other animals) are, i.e., we think that we do not actually also need these autonomous/robotic “beings” to be as conscious as we humans (and other animals) are.

Reference

Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia (2014). Neural correlates of consciousness. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neural_correlates_of_consciousness#cite_note-22.