Consciousness

Made by @agreyr

Consciousness

The state of being aware that we are conscious and that we can perceive what is going on in our minds and around us

Brain regions implicated in consciousness

Default Mode Network & Claustrum

Default Mode Network

Circuit of brain regions active during quiet introspective thought (frontal, parietal, and temporal regions)

Claustrum

Sheets of neurons in the forebrain (lateral to the basal ganglia)

Elements of consciousness

Theory of mind, mirror recognition, imitation, empathy & emotion, tool use, language, and metacognition

Theory of mind

Understanding others have their own beliefs, knowledge, and desires

Mirror recognition

Ability to recognize the self as depicted in a mirror

Imitation

Ability to copy the actions of others; may be important for empathy and self-awareness

Empathy & emotion

The ability to imagine the feelings of other individuals

Tool use

Ability to employ objects to achieve goals

Language

Use of a system of arbitrary symbols, with specific meanings and strict grammar, to convey information to other individuals

Metacognition

The ability to “think about thinking”

Executive functions

Higher-level cognitive processes that control and organize our thoughts, behaviors, and feelings

Task switching, working memory, inhibition of thoughts/behaviors, thought suppression, and monitoring of ongoing performance (ex: delay of gratification)

Prefrontal cortex responsible for working memory and task switching