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.
Materialism › Computational
Wang’s Layered Architecture and Cognitive Informatics
Consciousness as the Top Layer of a Formal Brain Architecture
Wang treats consciousness as the highest collective state in a layered functional architecture of the brain, built up from metabolic homeostasis, unconscious processing, and subconscious processing. Consciousness registers real-time information about the body’s and emotions’ condition in a proposed cerebellar ‘Conscious Status Memory,’ and the thalamus processes it dynamically. Wang writes this process in his own denotational mathematics so that cognitive computers and robots can implement it.
Yingxu Wang
What consciousness is
Consciousness is a collective state of self-awareness, environmental awareness, and intentional responsiveness, generated from the layers beneath it. Wang also calls it the sense of self and the sign of life in natural intelligence.
Mind and body
Mental processes are functions of physiological structures, organized in a reference model that maps cognitive functions onto neural mechanisms.
Mechanism
A conscious state is a function that maps current events (external stimuli and internal motivations) together with the contents of Conscious Status Memory onto an updated state of that memory.
Core claims
- The brain’s mental processes form a layered hierarchy from inherited, automatic functions to acquired, plastic, goal-controlled ones.
- Homeostasis is not consciousness but supplies the physiological stability consciousness requires.
- The cerebellum functions as Conscious Status Memory, a memory type alongside short-term, long-term, sensory-buffer, and action-buffer memory.
- Concept algebra, real-time process algebra, and system algebra can specify consciousness precisely enough for machine implementation.
Criticisms
Placing Conscious Status Memory in the cerebellum conflicts with clinical evidence that people with cerebellar agenesis or cerebellectomy remain broadly conscious. The formal apparatus is developed mostly within Wang’s own program and journals, with limited engagement with the wider consciousness literature.
Implications
- AI consciousness: Likely
- Wang formalizes consciousness explicitly so that cognitive computers and robots can implement it, which presumes machine consciousness is achievable.
- Survival beyond death: No
- Since consciousness is generated from physiological structures and depends on homeostasis, it follows from the view that it ends with the body.
- Virtual immortality: Uncertain
- The model allows consciousness in machines, but Wang does not discuss transferring a particular individual’s consciousness.
Related theories
Sources
- On Cognitive Informatics, Yingxu Wang (2003)
- A Layered Reference Model of the Brain (LRMB), Y. Wang, Y. Wang, S. Patel, and D. Patel (2006)
- Cognitive Informatics Models of the Brain, Y. Wang and Y. Wang (2006)
- The OAR Model of Neural Informatics for Internal Knowledge Representation in the Brain, Yingxu Wang (2007)
- On Contemporary Denotational Mathematics for Computational Intelligence, Yingxu Wang (2008)
- The Cognitive Mechanisms and Formal Models of Consciousness, Yingxu Wang (2012)
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
