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.
Panpsychism
Schneider and Bailey’s Entangled Superpsychism
Superconsciousness in Entanglement Beneath Spacetime
Susan Schneider and Mark Bailey propose that spacetime emerges from ‘prototime,’ a non-spatial, directionless quasi-temporal dimension in which quantum entanglement holds. The entangled whole at that level, an entanglement ‘megaobject,’ has a higher form of consciousness than anything in spacetime: maximally coherent, zero-entropy and fully integrated. They call this superpsychism, and they claim the same prototime picture explains puzzling quantum phenomena.
Susan Schneider, Mark Bailey
What consciousness is
The deepest form of consciousness is superconsciousness: experiential states in maximal coherence, perfect phase coordination and zero entropy, belonging to the holistically entangled structure beneath spacetime.
Mind and body
Consciousness supervenes on the fundamental physical level; if spacetime emerges from entanglement, then cognitive, phenomenal and perceptual states in brains supervene on that entangled base.
Mechanism
Persistent coherence across past, present and future in entangled systems, holding in prototime, produces unified experience in the entanglement object.
Core claims
- The universe may have two temporal dimensions: ordinary time with an arrow, and an arrowless quasi-temporal parameter called prototime.
- The prototime interpretation could be the best explanation of superposition, no-signaling, nonlocality, wave-particle duality, the double-slit experiment and delayed choice.
- Property dualists, panpsychists and physicalists agree that consciousness supervenes on the fundamental physical level, so brain consciousness should depend somehow on quantum phenomena.
- The entanglement megaobject has a higher form of consciousness than spacetime entities.
Criticisms
Schneider and Bailey call the claim that prototime best explains quantum phenomena controversial. The view variously describes the base level as superconscious and as protoconscious, leaving its exact status unclear.
Implications
- Meaning and purpose: Uncertain
- Schneider and Bailey find it natural to wonder whether superconsciousness is a cosmic mind or God but decline to conclude it, leaving open that it is a natural phenomenon or a simulation.
Related theories
Sources
- Schneider and Bailey’s Entangled Superpsychism (Landscape of Consciousness), Susan Schneider, Mark Bailey (2024)
- Artificial You: AI and the Future of Mind, Susan Schneider
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
