A short article entitled The Quest for Consciousness: A Neurobiological Approach is online at Scientific American. Three recent books examining the best present scientific understanding of consciousness are reviewed. The article is also a short introduction to the field of evolutionary psychology, a young field that merges brain science and psychology in a firmly evolutionary approach to consciousness. When the researchers in this field iron out the wrinkles in their theory, it will revolutionize more than psychology. Consider how central altered states of consciousness are to religion generally and to Mormonism (as one example and as the primary topic of this weblog). Dreams and visions, demon possession and exorcism, feeling overcome by the Spirit or sorely tempted of the devil, even simple prayer confirmations--all these phenomena are amenable to study under the general banner "altered states of consciousness." The visions and other conscious sensory phenomena that often accompany epilepsy and even migraine attacks are a simple example of the link between the brain, consciousness, and sensory stimuli. The problem, of course, is that not all apparent sensory stimuli correspond to objective real-world objects or causes--the brain sometimes creates its own stimuli (e.g., dreams or psychotic perceptions) but as individuals we may have difficulty distinguishing authentic from self-generated sensory experience. As data and theory continue to advance, the range of experiences explainable by this field will continue to expand. As research and theory confirmation in this field move into the mainstream over the next couple of decades, expect as much religious push-back as was (and is) directed at organic evolution.
For a hands-on introduction to the field, go to the Center for Evolutionary Psychology website, including their Evolutionary Psychology Primer.
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