Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas 168 | Anil Seth on Emergence, Information, and Consciousness
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Oct 11, 2021 
Anil Seth, a renowned professor of cognitive and computational neuroscience, discusses the intricacies of consciousness as an emergent phenomenon. He dives into the concepts of emergence in complex systems and its relevance to both consciousness and artificial intelligence. The conversation highlights the brain's predictive capabilities and how it interprets sensory data, emphasizing the importance of information flow and transfer entropy. Seth's philosophical exploration challenges our understanding of how higher-level conscious experiences arise from simpler neural activities.
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Physicalism and Consciousness
- Anil Seth identifies as a physicalist, believing consciousness is part of the natural world, closely tied to brain activity.
- He remains agnostic about the ultimate metaphysical fit of consciousness but emphasizes the real problem is linking experience to brain processes.
Types of Emergence
- Seth emphasizes the importance of using "emergence" carefully, not as a magical explanation.
- He contrasts strong emergence (new properties at higher levels) with weak emergence (whole is more than sum of parts, but explicable).
Flocking Birds Example
- Seth uses flocking birds (murmurations of starlings) as an example of weak emergence.
- Individual birds follow local rules, but the flock exhibits collective behavior.
