Head to head
Recurrent Processing Theory vs Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos
Lamme's Recurrent Processing Theory and Nagel's Mind and Cosmos, compared field by field from their entries in the Atlas.
At a glance
- Recurrent Processing Theory belongs to the Materialism family in Kuhn's Landscape of Consciousness, Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos to Challenge.
- Recurrent Processing Theory treats consciousness as emergent; Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos treats it as fundamental.
- On AI consciousness, Recurrent Processing Theory says “Likely” and Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos says “Uncertain”.
- On life after death, Recurrent Processing Theory says “No” and Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos says “Conditional”.
- On mind uploading, Recurrent Processing Theory says “Yes” and Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos says “Unlikely”.
- On meaning and purpose, Recurrent Processing Theory says “Humanistic only” and Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos says “Cosmic/Ultimate”.
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The claim
In brief
Recurrent Processing TheoryLamme's Recurrent Processing Theory (RPT) posits that consciousness is both necessary and sufficient when reciprocal (recurrent) feedback connections occur among neural areas, particularly in sensory systems. This processing, which happens locally in sensory and post-sensory areas (Stage 3), generates phenomenal experience without requiring global broadcast access.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosThis perspective challenges the prevailing materialist Neo-Darwinian conception of nature, arguing that it fails to account for the irreducible nature of subjective experience, or 'what it is like' to be a conscious organism. It proposes that mind must be incorporated as a fundamental principle of nature itself.
What consciousness is
Recurrent Processing TheoryConsciousness is identified as a specific recurrent processing state holding within relevant neural circuitry, such as the visual system.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosConsciousness is fundamentally subjective experience—'how it is for the subject himself'—which resists reduction to purely physical, third-person descriptions.
Big questions
Can AI be conscious?Differ
Recurrent Processing TheoryLikelyAs a Materialism Theory, AI consciousness must, in principle, be possible if the requisite pattern of recurrent processing could be artificially duplicated in a non-biological substrate.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosUncertainAs a critique of functionalism and reductionism, Nagel's view suggests that purely computational entities lacking fundamental mental properties are likely philosophical zombies; outcome depends on whether future AI can instantiate the hypothesized universal mental principles.
Recurrent Processing TheoryNoConsciousness is tied to physical brain activity and specific neural circuitry (recurrent processing states), suggesting cessation upon bodily death.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosConditionalIf consciousness is a universal, fundamental property rather than a biological emergent, its essence may persist after bodily dissolution (inferred from panpsychist leanings), though likely without retention of personal identity.
Recurrent Processing TheoryYesSince consciousness is the recurrent processing state itself, a perfect duplication of that process onto a new medium (upload) would generate the first-person self, enabling virtual immortality.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosUnlikelyThe irreducibility of subjective experience means duplication of physical/functional patterns alone would fail to transfer the original first-person consciousness.
Recurrent Processing TheoryHumanistic onlyThe theory focuses on a purely physicalist, neurobiological explanation of phenomenal experience and does not support any ultimate cosmic meaning or purpose.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosCosmic/UltimateExplicitly seeks to incorporate mind as a fundamental natural principle to overcome the 'pointlessness' implied by materialism, suggesting a non-theistic, inherent cosmic purpose or value.
Nature of mind
Ontology
Recurrent Processing TheoryPhysicalism
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosPhilosophical Challenge (leaning towards Universal Monism/Panpsychism)
Mind and body
Recurrent Processing TheoryIdentity/Reductionist approach, arguing that the notion of mind must move toward that of the brain, and consciousness is identical to a recurrent processing state in physical circuitry.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosCritiques the current conception of the mind-body relationship, asserting that we lack any conception of how physical and phenomenological aspects could be related or identical.
Fundamental or emergent
Recurrent Processing TheoryEmergent
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosPrimitive (or fundamental)
Qualia
Recurrent Processing TheoryQualia are generated when a certain recurrent processing state holds of the relevant visual circuitry, making the visual state conscious.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosQualia (felt qualities) are the core of the problem, and Nagel argues that no objective or physicalist explanation currently formulated can account for their subjective reality.
How it works
Mechanism
Recurrent Processing TheoryRecurrent processing (feedback connections) in sensory and post-sensory areas (Stage 3) is considered sufficient for consciousness.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosPrimarily focuses on exposing the conceptual limits of physical reductionism rather than positing a definitive mechanism. Mechanistically, his solution suggests consciousness arises through the composition of fundamental, panpsychic-like elements.
Where it is
Recurrent Processing TheoryLocalized in sensory and post-sensory areas, specifically recurrent activations in the 'back of the head'.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosUniversal/Systemic (inferred from universal monism/panpsychism leanings) or inherent in the fabric of nature.
What it does
Recurrent Processing TheoryConsciousness is the specific recurrent processing state itself. The underlying purpose is implied to move the understanding of mind toward the brain.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosPrimarily critical, arguing against the materialist view that consciousness is an inert epiphenomenon. If mind is a fundamental principle, it implies an irreducible, organizing role in the cosmos.
Evidence and criticism
Testability
Recurrent Processing TheoryEmpirically testable
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosUncertain/Primarily Conceptual. The theory's strength lies in its diagnosis of the explanatory gap, not in empirical verification. His suggested alternative (panpsychism) is highly speculative.
Tests so far
Recurrent Processing TheoryNot stated
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosNot stated
Criticisms
Recurrent Processing TheoryCritiques Global Workspace Theory (GWT) as being 'all about access but not about seeing'. Is itself criticized by Ned Block as a 'truncated form of the global workspace account'.
Nagel’s Mind and CosmosCriticized for retreating to 'mysterianism' and for rejecting established scientific frameworks (Neo-Darwinian materialism) without offering a concrete, robust, and detailed secular ontology as an alternative.
Sources
Key sources
Recurrent Processing Theory
- Towards a true neural stance on consciousness, Victor Lamme (2006)
- How neuroscience will change our view on consciousness, Victor Lamme (2010)
- Wu, 2018 (Discussing Lamme's RPT) (2018)
Nagel’s Mind and Cosmos
- What Is It Like to Be a Bat? (1974)
- The View from Nowhere (1986)
- Mind & Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature Is Almost Certainly False (2012)