>In IIT, the amount of consciousness a system has is tracked by a mathematical quantity called Phi, and, according to the theory, wherever there is non-zero Phi, there will be consciousness, at least to some degree. This implies a restricted form of panpsychism, since instances of non-zero Phi can be found beyond brains, and even in non-biological systems.<p>Interesting... from my perspective, it seems <i>more</i> pseudoscientific to claim that there is something unique about carbon-based lifeforms, which allows them to be conscious and prevents other things from being conscious.<p>Like, is the universe supposed to check for the presence of carbon before it decides to endow a computation with a subjective experience? That seems wack.<p>In any case, I don't understand why there are so many people interested in consciousness, and so few people interested in sensation. Suppose I've been drinking all night, and I'm out cold on the floor, unconscious due to intoxication. You walk up and give me a kick. I'm still unconscious, but I might respond by yelping or rolling over. I won't remember anything about the incident in the morning, but it still caused me pain.<p>Despite my being unconscious, there is still some process which generated pain when you kicked me. Why is it that whatever occurred in my nervous system generated pain rather than pleasure? For example, there are some neurotransmitters and receptors which are associated with pain, and others which are associated with pleasure -- is there something about dopamine which makes it intrinsically pleasurable? Or is it easy to imagine an organism that evolved to use dopamine to signal pain rather than pleasure? And if the latter -- which strikes me as more likely -- what lever is the dopamine actually pulling? What is actually going on in the brain's "pain center" or "pleasure center" which causes pain or pleasure?<p>It seems to me that solving the puzzle of sensation should be considered a prerequisite for the problem of consciousness, because consciousness is mix of information processing + varied sensations.