The Consciousness Atlas is an interactive web app that visualizes more
than 450 theories of consciousness. It is based on Robert Lawrence
Kuhn's 2024 paper,
"A Landscape of Consciousness". The Atlas maps theories that address phenomenal consciousness - the
subjective feel of experience, such as the redness of red.
What the Atlas is
The Atlas is a visual reference built on Kuhn's taxonomy. It presents
the full set of theories at once so you can explore the field visually
and open any theory to read its entry, like an encyclopedia with
structured entries. Each theory entry shows a concise identity line,
conceptual ground, suggested mechanism, empirical notes, implications,
and sources.
Why this exists
Consciousness is studied across disciplines - neuroscience,
philosophy, and sometimes spiritual or anomalous-state research.
Kuhn's paper collects and organizes hundreds of theories along a
spectrum from most physical to least physical. The Atlas puts that
organization into a visual form so readers, students, and researchers
can quickly see how different positions relate and where each theory
sits on the spectrum.
How it works
Theories are grouped into ten main categories, arranged by their
stance on the physical-to-nonphysical spectrum. Examples of categories
include Materialism, Non-Reductive Physicalism, Functionalism,
Quantum-based theories, Panpsychism, Monism, Dualism, Idealism,
Anomalous States, and Challenge Theories. The app shows the whole map
at once. Click any theory to read its structured entry, which includes
references to canonical sources and named thinkers.
Who it is for
- Students learning philosophy of mind and cognitive science
-
Researchers and lecturers looking for an at-a-glance comparative
resource
-
Journalists and writers who need a quick reference to the range of
positions
-
Curious readers who want a clear view of what people mean when they
talk about consciousness
What the Atlas does not do
The Atlas does not endorse or rank theories. It is a visualization and
reference based on Kuhn's taxonomy - collect and present, not judge.
It does not attempt to settle the hard problem of consciousness. It is
a tool for exploration and comparison.
A note from Kuhn
Kuhn explicitly states the project's purpose: "collect and categorize,
not assess and adjudicate." The Consciousness Atlas follows that
approach. The data and structure are derived from Kuhn's paper;
feedback and suggested corrections are welcome, but the app is a
visualization layer on top of Kuhn's work.
Kuhn was not involved in the design or content of the Consciousness
Atlas, other than his original paper, 'A Landscape of Consciousness,'
which is the sole source.
FAQ
What is phenomenal consciousness?
Phenomenal consciousness refers to subjective experience - the
qualitative feel of being aware, like the taste of coffee or the
redness of red.
How many theories does the Atlas include?
The Atlas visualizes over 220 individual theories, grouped into ten
broad categories.
Does the Atlas show which theory is true?
No. The Atlas presents theories neutrally. It is a map, not an
argument for any single position.
Is the Atlas academic?
The Atlas is based on an academic source - Robert Kuhn's 2024 paper,
"A Landscape of Consciousness" - and links to canonical sources
where available.
Summary
The Consciousness Atlas is a straightforward visualization tool: it
presents Kuhn's taxonomy as a single, explorable map and lets users
open individual theory entries to read structured, referenced
summaries. It is designed to make this complex field easier to survey
and to serve as a practical reference.
Quantum
Gambini and Pullin’s Quantum Panprotopsychism
Consciousness as the Inner Aspect of Quantum Events
Physicists Rodolfo Gambini and Jorge Pullin argue that consciousness is best explained by an ontology of quantum states and events that carry internal phenomenal aspects, a form of panprotopsychism. Quantum indeterminacy leaves room for consciousness to be causally effective, and entanglement produces new properties that, they claim, answer the combination problem that classical versions of panpsychism cannot.
Rodolfo Gambini, Jorge Pullin
What consciousness is
Consciousness is built from the internal phenomenal aspects of quantum events, the occurrences that quantum systems in given states produce in other systems.
Mind and body
Physics describes only the observed regularities of how things behave; phenomenal qualities are the intrinsic, inner side of the same quantum events, and they have real causal effects.
Mechanism
Quantum entanglement combines protophenomenal events into subjects, and quantum indeterminacy gives those subjects causal efficacy.
Core claims
- Classical mechanistic determinism leaves no room for any intrinsic aspect of things that is not epiphenomenal.
- Quantum probabilistic determinism, read as an ontology of states and events, makes room for causally effective consciousness.
- The combination problem arises from classical assumptions about supervenience that fail at the quantum level.
- The account needs only quantum kinematics and the random production of events, not any particular interpretation of quantum mechanics.
Criticisms
The view takes on the standard burdens of panprotopsychism, and its answer to the combination problem depends on whether entanglement in warm brains can do the work it assigns to it.
Implications
- AI consciousness: Uncertain
- Consciousness here depends on combining quantum events through entanglement, and Gambini and Pullin do not say whether classical computers could do that.
- Virtual immortality: Unlikely
- If subjects form only through quantum entanglement, it follows from the view that a classical simulation would not reproduce them.
Related theories
Sources
- Gambini and Pullin’s Quantum Panprotopsychism (Landscape of Consciousness), Rodolfo Gambini, Jorge Pullin (2024)
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
