Panprotopsychism treats consciousness much like a fundamental force of the universe—one that cannot be reduced to simply an effect of other physical forces. One might imagine a sort of universal field that holds the potential for consciousness. In the interpretation of this view that I hold, it is the kind of information-processing complexity found in the brain that “awakens” that force into the kind of subjective experience we recognize. Thus, whether a brain is made of carbon or silicon, the complexity that would enable it to give the outward signs of consciousness also endows it with
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