Building Conscious Minds: Navon's Framework and ACM Implementation

What does it take to create a conscious mind? This paper by Mois Navon provides a foundational exploration of consciousness, blending theology and science to examine the challenges of creating artificial minds and their alignment with human cognition.

To Make a Mind—A Primer on Conscious Robots, authored by Mois Navon for Theology and Science, discusses the historical, philosophical, and technological aspects of building conscious robots, linking biblical insights to modern theories of consciousness.

Key Highlights

• Theological Insights: Draws from biblical concepts, such as the soul’s relationship to blood, to propose unique perspectives on human and artificial consciousness.
• Phenomenal and Functional Consciousness: Differentiates between experience-based (phenomenal) and computation-based (functional) consciousness, emphasizing the complexity of replicating the former in robots.
• Three Camps of Artificial Consciousness:
  • Infocentric: Believes consciousness arises from computation alone.
  • Physiocentric: Emphasizes the importance of replicating the brain’s physical processes.
  • Biocentric: Asserts that consciousness is inherently biological and tied to specific life processes.
• Ethical Implications: Highlights the moral challenges of creating conscious beings, especially as robots gain human-like cognitive and emotional abilities.

Connection to ACM

The Artificial Consciousness Module (ACM) resonates with Navon’s exploration in several ways:

• Conceptual Frameworks: ACM can incorporate insights from the infocentric and physiocentric camps to refine its approach to simulating consciousness.
• Ethics and Design: The emphasis on theological and moral considerations aligns with ACM’s commitment to ethical AI development.
• Emergent Consciousness: Navon’s discussion of the requirements for phenomenal consciousness offers a guide for advancing ACM’s work in creating adaptive, reflective AI.

For a detailed exploration of the theological and scientific aspects of artificial consciousness, access the full paper here.