Attention and Consciousness Rely on Distinct Neural Mechanisms

The information in this post is related to my ongoing series on Bernard Baars' Global Workspace Theory of consciousness (see Part One, Part Two, and Part Three - part four is in process). In Baars' model, attention and consciousness are not identical, whereas many other cognitive models of consciousness do see them as either identical, or view attention as an inseparable aspect of consciousness (Posner, 1994; Jackendoff, 1996; Velmans, 1996; Merikle and Joordens, 1997; Mack and Rock, 1998; Chun and Wolfe, 2000; ORegan and Noe, 2001; Mole, 2008; De Brigard and Prinz, 2010; Prinz, 2010).

In a 2010 article, Christof Koch and his team (Consciousness and attention: On sufficiency and necessity) reviewed an extensive body of research showing that attention and consciousness can be examined... [via Integral Options Cafe]