Exploring Consciousness (Hardcover)

The fundamental question underlying this book is the "hard problem" - how to define and explain "consciousness". Carter recognizes that we all have our own beliefs about our own mental states. Her aim, however, is to encourage us to question what appears obvious. Most definitions of "consciousness" are circular, mostly from lack of precision. The precision should be obtainable - over thirty thousand papers have been published on the topic during the past decade alone. The text offers approaches to investigating the "hard problem" and summarises what conclusions have been reached so far. Carter is frank in explaining that final answers are elusive, encouraging further investigation and analysis. Her approach in dealing with these questions is to pose them, introduce the thinking of others on the topic, then draw her own conclusions. The technique is informative and has the further advantage of avoiding polemics. Sometimes, she even referees the clashes of some scholars.

In presenting the view of various researchers, she introduces snippets of their thinking. The samplings are a prime example of how the border between philosopy and cognitive science has blurred in recent years. Each of the contributions illustrates a major contributor to modern cognitive science. In some cases the views are sharply divergent on the same topic, so Carter aligns them for direct comparison. These insertions present a difficult problem for the reader, as a decision must be made to stop and review these mini-essays, or continue on to return to them later. They all bear close scrutiny and deserve reader follow-up. Carter has chosen her samples well, although of necessity, the collection cannot be complete.

The illustrations bring this book near the "coffee table" class, but the information is far superior to common examples of that genre. Regrettably, the chapter lead graphics are purely interpretative, adding nothing to the information. Further, these extravagant graphics must certainly add unnecessary cost to this book. If a richly illustrated, lucidly written work on the mechanisms of your mind is your taste, then choose this one. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Here, Rita Carter explains consciousness with insight and an awareness of the complexities of the subject. The writing is clear and makes use of thaught experiments and metaphores extensively so that on reading the book I really did feel like I'd gained understanding as opposed to becoming more confused.

She deals with the history of philosophical ideas behind consciousness, what exactly it is, the way the brain works, artificial intelligence and much more in engaging and exploratory chapters. Papers on specific subjects by experts are included to give more focused looks at the science and ideas behind the topics she mentions.

A fantastic book, accessable yet in-depth (does require some measure of basic biology of the nervous system) on a fascinating subject.
A book to take away to a quiet place, read and think about. Great.