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J O U R N A L O F
C O N S C I O U S N E S S S T U D I E S
Controversies in Science and Religion
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A NEW INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL
APPEARING SUMMER 1994
** Volume 1, No.1, 1994 **
John Beloff Francis Crick
Robert Forman Stuart Hameroff
Valerie Gray Hardcastle
Ivan Illich Ben Libet
Chris Nunn Eleanor Rosch
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HUNTER COLLEGE, CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
Dear Colleague:
Over the last few years research into consciousness has at last become
accepted within the academic community. As John Searle puts it, raising
the subject of consciousness in cognitive science discussions is no
longer considered to be `bad taste', causing graduate students to
`roll their eyes at the ceiling and assume expressions of mild disgust.'
However there seem to be two entirely separate traditions of scholarship
that rarely talk to each other. On the one hand we have the standard
scientific assumption that consciousness is a mere epiphenomenon of
physical processes that can best be explained by the computational
metaphor. This view has been strongly advocated by recent best-selling
books, such as Dan Dennett's `Consciousness Explained' and Francis
Crick's `The Astonishing Hypothesis'.
By contrast, the phenomenological approach, best exemplified by the
transpersonal and contemplative traditions, has focused on transformative
techniques which claim to reveal the nature of consciousness in a
more experiential way. They suggest that consciousness is more primary
than matter or the brain, and is deeply and holistically connected
to the world.
As each tradition and discipline has its own jargon and assumptions,
major barriers prevent the advocate of one approach talking
with another.
The JOURNAL OF CONSCIOUSNESS STUDIES will bridge this divide by:
_ Presenting peer-reviewed scientific and humanistic papers in
non-technical language.
_ Including philosophical critiques of the assumptions and
conclusions of contemporary research.
_ Considering submissions from all disciplines on their own scholarly
merits.
_ Encouraging a lively debate on the full range of philosophical,
spiritual and ethical issues involved.
_ Covering a wide range of associated topics.
I would like to invite you to sample our first issue, which focuses
on recent research into consciousness (see order form on last page).
Yours faithfully
Robert K.C. Forman (Assistant Professor)
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EDITORIAL BOARD
EXECUTIVE EDITORS:
Professor Joseph A. Goguen, Oxford University, Computing Science
Professor Robert K.C. Forman, City University of New York, Religion
MANAGING EDITORS:
Jane Clark, Oxford
Professor Jonathan Shear, Virginia Commonwealth University, Philosophy
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD:
Professor Bernard J. Baars, Wright Institute, Cognitive Science
Professor Ewert Cousins, Fordham University, Religion
Professor Daniel C. Dennett, Tufts University, Cognitive Studies
Professor Margaret Donaldson, Edinburgh University, Psychology
Sir John Eccles
Dr. Peter Fenwick, Maudsley Hospital, Neuropsychiatry
Professor Brian Goodwin, Open University, Biology
Professor Stuart Hameroff, Arizona University, Anaesthesiology
Professor Willis Harman, Stanford University, Engineering
Professor Erich Harth, Syracuse University, Physics
Dr. Basil Hiley, University of London, Physics
Professor Benjamin Libet, University of California at
San Francisco, Physiology
Professor Raimon Panikkar, University of California at
Santa Barbara, Religion
Professor Roger Penrose, Oxford University, Mathematics
Professor Eleanor Rosch, University of California at
Berkeley, Psychology
Professor Huston Smith, Syracuse University, Philosophy
Professor Susan Leigh Star, Illinois University, Sociology
Professor Francisco Varela, CREA, Paris, Cognitive Science
Professor George Wald, Harvard University, Biology
Professor Roger Walsh, University of California at Irvine, Psychiatry
Professor Arthur Zajonc, Amherst College, Physics
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THE NEED
Western culture seems to have reached a crisis point,
and may be on the verge of significant changes.
Many of its central tendencies, such as rationalism,
absolutism, reductionism and the construction of grand
unified theories, are under attack.
AIMS AND SCOPE
At the heart of this movement is the question of
consciousness. As the new sciences of cognition and
neurophysiology begin to solidify their findings, they
are fuelling discussions about the nature of mind which
extend across many areas of knowledge. Is consciousness
merely an epiphenomenon, a by-product of physical
processes? Or is it the central phenomenon, the ground
from which everything else arises, as the spiritual
traditions have always believed?
THE JOURNAL OF CONSCIOUSNESS STUDIES will present some
of the more exciting voices in this debate to a non-
specialist audience, without diluting their content.
We do not pre-judge where the discussion will lead, and
would like to see all serious positions represented.
All articles are evaluated for non-technical
accessibility before being submitted for peer review.
THE PUBLISHER
The journal is published in the UK and USA by Imprint
Academic. Our flagship publication, History of Political
Thought, was recently voted top international political
theory journal by the Political Studies Association.
Imprint Academic, PO Box 1, Thorverton, Exeter EX5 5YX, UK.
Tel/Fax: +44 (0)392 841600.
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** VOLUME 1, NO. 1, SUMMER 1994 **
The journal consists of three broad sections:
THEORETICAL (peer-reviewed papers)
Papers in this section are drawn mainly from Cognitive Science, Mathematics,
Philosophy, Psychology, Religion, Art, Literature and the Social Sciences.
EMPIRICAL & EXPERIMENTAL (peer-reviewed papers)
This section is mainly concerned with the natural sciences. Great
care is taken to ensure that technical papers are written in an accessible
way.
OPINIONS, BOOK REVIEWS, INTERVIEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & CONFERENCE REPORTS
In contrast with the previous sections, this is informal
in style. Interesting speculation and controversial opinion are encouraged.
** THEORETICAL SECTION **
**MINDS AND MACHINES: A RADICAL DUALIST PERSPECTIVE**
JOHN BELOFF, Psychology, Edinburgh
A comparison between materialist and dualist models of
mind which suggests that the evidence for paraphenomena provides the
decisive argument.
**OF CAPSULES AND CARTS': MYSTICISM, LANGUAGE AND THE VIA NEGATIVA**
ROBERT FORMAN, Religion, City University of New York
The paper argues that mystical experiences are not formed
by the same linguistic processes that shape ordinary experience.
**IS CAUSALITY CIRCULAR? EVENT STRUCTURE IN FOLK PSYCHOLOGY, COGNITIVE**
SCIENCE AND BUDDHIST LOGIC
ELEANOR ROSCH, Psychology, University of California, Berkeley
The psychology of event coherence is examined, based on
the treatment of causality in the Buddhist Madhyamika.
** EMPIRICAL/EXPERIMENTAL SECTION **
**QUANTUM COHERENCE IN MICROTUBULES**
STUART HAMEROFF, Arizona University Health Sciences Center
This paper presents the case for seeing consciousness as
an emergent phenomenon, arising from sub-neuronal quantum effects
in the brain.
**PSYCHOLOGY'S `BINDING PROBLEM' AND POSSIBLE NEUROLOGICAL SOLUTIONS**
VALERIE GRAY HARDCASTLE, Philosophy, Virginia Tech.
A critical look at several theories for the neurological
basis to the perceived unity of self and conscious experience.
**A TESTABLE FIELD THEORY OF MIND BRAIN INTERACTION**
BENJAMIN LIBET, Physiology, California University, San Francisco
The paper hypothesises a `consciousness' field which is
causally effective over neuronal function, and suggests an experimental
test.
**COLLAPSE OF A QUANTUM FIELD MAY AFFECT BRAIN FUNCTION*
C.M.H. NUNN (Psychiatry), C.J.S. CLARKE (Mathematics) & B.H. BLOTT
(Physics), Southampton University
Experiments are described, using EEG and simple tests of
performance, which support the hypothesis that collapse of a quantum
field is of importance to the functioning of the brain.
** OPINIONS, BOOK REVIEWS, INTERVIEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS **
**Interview with FRANCIS CRICK**
Francis Crick argues the case for a classical reductionist
model of the mind, and explains how entrusting the study of consciousness
to experimental scientists is not `like leaving Chopin
in the hands of skilled riveters'!
**Interview with ROGER PENROSE**
Professor Penrose explains the developments in both his
own thinking and neuroscience that led him to write Shadows
of the Mind (OUP, 1994), the sequel to his best-selling book
The Emperor's New Mind.
**Health as One's Own Responsibility: No, Thank You!**
IVAN ILLICH, History, Penn State University
This controversial article traces the idea of individual
healthcare back to its historical roots and argues that it is based
on a `blasphemous' misunderstanding of the Christian doctrine of `life'.
** CONFERENCE REPORTS **
**Towards an Adequate Epistemology for the Scientific Exploration
of Consciousness**
Tomales Bay, 1992, by WILLIS HARMAN
**The Third Symposium on Science and Consciousness**
Uxmal, Mexico, January 1994, by EMILIOS BOURATINOS
**`Toward a Scientific Basis for Consciousness'**
Tucson, Arizona, April 1994, by JANE CLARK
**Academy of Consciousness Studies**
Princeton University, June July 1994
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** CONSCIOUSNESS RESEARCH ABSTRACTS **
One of the main problems facing scholars is the need
to keep informed on other work in the field. This is hard enough
even
within one's own discipline, and almost impossible across different
to keep up with relevant work on consciousness in the neurosciences.
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Starting with Volume 1, No.2, the Journal of Consciousness
Studies will address this essential research need with a supplement,
Consciousness Research Abstracts. We will scan a very wide
range of journals and conference proceedings from every discipline
to compile a unique database of theory, comment and research into
consciousness. Abstracts will be carefully classified by principal
subject (with cross-references for research topics and theoretical
issues) along with cumulative author and keyword indexes. This will
be based upon the system developed for one of our previous publications,
Computer Abstracts. Selected abstracts will include editorial
notes or peer reviews of methodologies and conclusions.
To supplement the work of our own researchers, authors
and readers (and publishing houses) are encouraged to send abstracts
of published work (together with bibliographic details) to:
Professor Jonathan Shear, Journal of Consciousness
Studies, Dept. of Philosophy, Virginia Commonwealth University,
Richmond, VA 23284-2025, USA. Fax: (804) 282 2119.
Email: jshear at cabell.vcu.edu
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** CALL FOR PAPERS **
Articles for publication (three copies) should be submitted
to any of the addresses below. Style sheets and guidance to authors
available on request. All articles are peer-refereed. Announcements
and books for review should be sent to Jane Clark or Jonathan
Shear.
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Professor J.A. Goguen, Oxford University
Computing Laboratory, Wolfson Building, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QD,
UK. Tel: +44 (0)865 283504. Fax: +(0)865 273839.
Email: goguen at comlab.ox.ac.uk.
Professor Robert K.C. Forman, Program in
Religion, Hunter College of the City University of New York, 695 Park
Ave., New York, NY 10021. Tel and Fax: (914) 478 7802.
Professor Jonathan Shear, Journal of Consciousness
Studies, Dept. of Philosophy, Virginia Commonwealth University,
Richmond, Virginia 23284-2025, USA. Tel./Fax: (804) 282 2119.
Email: jshear at cabell.vcu.edu
Jane Clark, 2 Gathorne Road, Headington, Oxford OX3 8NE, UK.
Tel: +44 (0)865 66122; Fax: +44 (0)865 52154.
Subscriptions, circulation enquiries, advertising etc. should be
addressed to: Imprint Academic, PO Box No. 1, Thorverton, Exeter EX5
5YX,
UK. Tel & Fax: +44 (0)392 841600.
__________________________________________________________________
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JOURNAL OF CONSCIOUSNESS STUDIES SUBSCRIPTION/FREE SAMPLE
COPY REQUEST
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** SUBSCRIPTION RATES **
VOLUME I (1994) -- two issues per annum.
Prices include post and packing
US Sterling
Individuals $25.00 </c>15.00
Institutions $48.00 </c>28.00
Cheques payable to Imprint Academic, drawn on London in Sterling,
or bank transfer, or $US check. Banking details: Lloyds Bank plc,
234 High Street, Exeter EX4 3NL, UK. Branch code: 90-93-14;
A/C: Imprint Academic, A/C No. 0013105
Send order to:
(for North American continent)
Professor Jonathan Shear, Journal of Consciousness Studies,
Dept. of Philosophy, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia
23284-2025, USA. Fax: (804) 282 2119. Email: jshear at cabell.vcu.edu
(for rest of world)
Imprint Academic, PO Box 1, Thorverton, Exeter EX5 5YX, UK.
Tel & Fax: +44 (0)392 841600.
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Jonathan Shear
jshear at cabell.vcu.edu
