{"product_id":"the-feeling-of-life-itself-why-consciousness-is-widespread-but-cant-be-computed","title":"The Feeling of Life Itself: Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can't Be Computed","description":"\u003cp\u003eA thought-provoking argument that consciousnessmore widespread than previously assumedis the feeling of being alive  not a type of computation or a clever hack  In The Feeling of Life Itself  Christof Koch offers a straightforward definition of consciousness as any subjective experience  from the most mundane to the most exaltedthe feeling of being alive. Psychologists study which cognitive operations underpin a given conscious perception. Neuroscientists track the neural correlates of consciousness in the brain  the organ of the mind. But why the brain and not  say  the liver? How can the brainthree pounds of highly excitable matter  a piece of furniture in the universe  subject to the same laws of physics as any other piecegive rise to subjective experience? Koch argues that what is needed to answer these questions is a quantitative theory that starts with experience and proceeds to the brain. In The Feeling of Life Itself  Koch outlines such a theory  based on integrated information.  Koch describes how the theory explains many facts about the neurology of consciousness and how it has been used to build a clinically useful consciousness meter. The theory predicts that many  and perhaps all  animals experience the sights and sounds of life; consciousness is much more widespread than conventionally assumed. Contrary to received wisdom  however  Koch argues that programmable computers will not have consciousness. Even a perfect software model of the brain is not conscious. Its simulation is fake consciousness. Consciousness is not a special type of computationit is not a clever hack. Consciousness is about being.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44946460114997,"sku":"ByrdShop_0262042819","price":51.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780262042819.jpg?v=1769950363","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-feeling-of-life-itself-why-consciousness-is-widespread-but-cant-be-computed","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}