Basic Understanding of Consciousness - Essay Example

1. Cortex is the main organ for consciousness and isolating the cerebral hemispheres surgically alters consciousness;
2. Consciousness is the most vital part of our living and it makes life worth living. It gives value to our lives as it gives meaning to the different parts of our lives;
3. Apart from humans, some animals also experience consciousness to some extent because they are capable of exhibiting emotions;
4. However, Consciousness is difficult to define because it is not physical. It is part of the soul;
5. Consciousness is subjective while science is objective and therefore is difficult to understand, research, and define consciousness through the same principles of science (Searle, 2013);
6. Consciousness begins when we wake up from a dreamless sleep and ends when we go back to another dreamless sleep or we die. Dreams are part of consciousness;
7. Consciousness remains with the person till three minutes after his heart stops beating even when the brain stops functioning 20 to 30 seconds after the heart stops (AFP, 2014)
8. Consciousness is real because as Descartes pointed out we think therefore we are;
9. Consciousness exists as a unified conscious field and the experiences that we achieve through our consciousness are casual in nature (Chalmers, 2014);
10. Future research may help us get more insight into consciousness because future technology is focusing on reading a living brain as opposed to a dead one.

The information listed above provides a basic understanding of consciousness. Information on consciousness right now is limited. The above information helps because it identifies the part of the human brain that relates to consciousness.  It covers aspects of human consciousness such as times when humans experience and do not experience consciousness. Recently it has been studied that consciousness continues even when the brain stops working. We continue to experience consciousness 3 minutes after death while the brain is long dead. When consciousness is experienced through the cortex in the brain, the possibility of experiencing consciousness after death raises interesting questions. The information presented above is helpful for further study into the area. Right now the study of consciousness has not been explored thoroughly but the fact stated above presents interesting avenues of exploration. Science can come to explore consciousness now that machines have been invented that explore the living human brain.

The biggest weakness is probably that the brain controls consciousness. If the brain does indeed control consciousness, then how is consciousness experienced after the brain stops working? Also the extent different organs experience consciousness is not discussed. It is possible that different parts of the human body including the neurons help in the experience of consciousness. Therefore consciousness continues to live until all organs of the human body shut down.

The information given above provides a way forward for more research on this area. Right now, consciousness is considered a part of psychology. This information gives a way forward for science and psychology to move together to understand the complexity of consciousness. This is more possible now that science has been able to read the brain. The facts listed above state that the cortex is the organ responsible for the conscious state of mind. Science can then take over by studying this specific part of the brain through their technology. However, since consciousness is mostly subjective in nature, a collaboration is necessary between the fields of psychology and science. Right now most study of consciousness is limited to humans but one can move on to researching animals. Research can also delve into the extent to which animals exhibit consciousness and study whether plant life can exhibit consciousness.