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.
Idealism
Samarawickrama’s Fundamental, Frequency-Bearing Field
Consciousness as a Fundamental, Frequency-Bearing Field
Mahendra Samarawickrama holds that consciousness is a fundamental dimension of reality that gives experience before any cognition, logic, or language, which are secondary constructs built from it. He models consciousness as a sequential field with a fundamental frequency, linking Einstein's E=mc² and Planck's E=hf, and adds a ‘consciousness particle’, the primion, that carries hidden variables accessible to experience but not to physical measurement. Consciousness runs in two modes: a self-referential mode that produces knowledge and is Gödel-incomplete, and a non-referential mode of direct, complete awareness of causation.
Mahendra Samarawickrama
What consciousness is
Consciousness is a fundamental, frequency-bearing field and a sequential process that grounds all experience and knowledge. It is directly experiential and independent of the brain's cognitive, logical, and linguistic processes.
Mind and body
Consciousness interacts with matter and energy through its frequency-based field, and Samarawickrama holds that physical principles such as least action keep integrity with conscious experience. He claims his view departs from physicalism, idealism, and Kant alike, with consciousness manifesting both material and immaterial perception.
Mechanism
A frequency-based consciousness field driven by deterministic chaos, with primion hidden variables replacing quantum randomness and preserving the continuity of experience.
Core claims
- A frequency-based field for consciousness unifies E=mc² and E=hf and aligns experience with fundamental physics.
- Quantum randomness is better modeled as deterministic chaos governed by hidden variables carried by the primion, which stay inaccessible to measurement.
- Any formal description of consciousness is Gödel-incomplete, but the non-referential mode of direct awareness is complete and decidable.
- AI cannot become conscious through computation alone, though interfaces with living brains or organoids could yield consciousness-aware systems.
Criticisms
Since the primion's hidden variables are by design undetectable by physical means, the proposal escapes conflict with quantum mechanics at the cost of being hard to test. Applying Gödel's theorems, which concern formal systems, to experience is a contested move, and the claim that direct awareness is ‘complete and decidable’ borrows logical terms outside their usual domain.
Implications
- AI consciousness: Conditional
- Computation and material processes alone can never yield consciousness, but Samarawickrama supports consciousness-aware AI built by interfacing machines with living brains or organoids through human-in-the-loop designs.
- Virtual immortality: Unlikely
- Consciousness transcends logic, language, and computation, to which digital systems are confined, so a purely computational copy would not be conscious.
Related theories
Sources
- Samarawickrama’s Fundamental, Frequency-bearing Field (Landscape of Consciousness entry), Mahendra Samarawickrama (2024)
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
