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.
Anomalous
Mossbridge’s Informational Substrate as Collective Unconscious
Consciousness as Writing Intentions to the Collective Unconscious
Julia Mossbridge proposes that a quantum-level informational substrate outside spacetime underlies reality and is the same thing as Jung’s collective unconscious. Individual unconscious minds read from this substrate and filter what reaches awareness, and consciousness exists because only conscious intention can ‘write’ back to it, shaping future events and giving us a share in its free will.
Julia Mossbridge
What consciousness is
Individual consciousness is pure awareness, distinct from its contents, whose defining power is to send intentions to the informational substrate (IS/CU) that computes spacetime events.
Mind and body
The IS/CU informs everything that happens in spacetime, including neuronal firing and the objects we perceive. Unconscious minds are nonphysical containers that hold and act on information drawn from it.
Mechanism
Read and write: the unconscious reads from the IS/CU, but only consciousness can write to it, because the individual unconscious does not speak the substrate’s ‘language’.
Core claims
- Quantum mechanics requires a foundational informational substrate that informs what emerges in spacetime.
- Unconscious minds retrieve information about nonlocal events, which Mossbridge says has been shown for skilled individuals.
- Her own research finds that states of unconditional love support more accurate precognition.
- A test for consciousness in any entity would be whether it can read from and write to the IS/CU, amounting to a psi test.
Criticisms
The model builds on explicitly stated assumptions (that the substrate equals the collective unconscious, that the unconscious reads from it), and on psi findings that remain disputed.
Implications
- AI consciousness: Conditional
- AIs could be conscious if they can write intentions directly to the IS/CU, which on this model means passing a test of psi ability.
- Meaning and purpose: Cosmic/Ultimate
- Consciousness exists to take part in shaping reality through the IS/CU, and free will is gained by including oneself in it.
Related theories
Sources
- Mossbridge’s Informational Substrate as Collective Unconscious (Landscape of Consciousness), Julia Mossbridge (2023)
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
