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
Sprigge’s Absolute Idealism
Finite Minds as Perspectives Within One Cosmic Experience
Timothy Sprigge holds that phenomenal consciousness is the only intrinsically concrete reality we know, and that the physical world described by science is an abstract relational structure whose inner nature is experiential. The countless centers of experience making up nature are partial aspects of one all-inclusive cosmic experience, the Absolute, and finite minds are real but incomplete perspectives within it.
Timothy L. S. Sprigge
What consciousness is
Consciousness, defined by Sprigge as what it is like to be a given subject in a given situation, is the intrinsic nature of reality. What appears outwardly as physical is, in itself, experience in enormously varying forms and degrees.
Mind and body
Physical facts correlate with, express and structurally map consciousness but do not reveal what it is in itself. The hard problem arises only when physical description is mistaken for concrete ontology.
Mechanism
A Russell-Eddington argument: physics gives only relational, causal and mathematical structure, so the best hypothesis is that the intrinsic nature of that structure is experiential, all of it united in the Absolute.
Core claims
- Sprigge defined phenomenal consciousness as what it is like to be a subject in a situation in 1971, about three years before Nagel's better-known version, which Nagel acknowledged.
- Behaviorism and functionalism gain plausibility only by assuming the Humean principle that there are no necessary connections between distinct existences.
- Agnosticism about the intrinsic nature of matter is possible but explains less than idealist panpsychism, so Sprigge's case is an inference to the best explanation.
- Wherever there is sentience there is morally considerable reality, which grounds concern for animals and nature.
Criticisms
The view faces the reverse of the panpsychist combination problem: if the whole is primary, how can finite centers of experience be distinct without becoming independent? Sprigge answers that they are real but incomplete abstractions, phenomenologically separate yet metaphysically partial.
Implications
- Meaning and purpose: Cosmic/Ultimate
- Reality is ultimately experiential, unified and value-laden, and every finite mind is a perspective within one all-inclusive experience.
Related theories
Sources
- Final Causes, T. L. S. Sprigge & A. Montefiore (1971)
- The Vindication of Absolute Idealism, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (1983)
- James and Bradley: American Truth and British Reality, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (1993)
- Consciousness, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (Synthese) (1994)
- The God of Metaphysics, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (2006)
- My Philosophy and Some Defence of It, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (2007)
- The Importance of Subjectivity: Selected Essays in Metaphysics and Ethics, Timothy L. S. Sprigge (L. B. McHenry, Ed.) (2011)
- Consciousness, Reality and Value: Essays in Honour of T. L. S. Sprigge, P. Basile & L. B. McHenry (Eds.) (2007)
- Sprigge's Ontology of Consciousness, L. B. McHenry (2010)
- A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, George Berkeley (1710)
- Appearance and Reality, F. H. Bradley (1893)
- What Is It Like to Be a Bat?, Thomas Nagel (1974)
Explore all theories on the Consciousness Atlas
