APSK05108U Elective Course - The Feeling of Being

The feeling of being: theoretical and empirical approaches to the study of human consciousness                                                       

Despite decades of scientific research and centuries of philosophical analysis, consciousness remains one of the greatest scientific challenges of our time. What is consciousness and which brain mechanisms shape the unique sense of self implicit in all our thoughts and perceptions? How can we attempt to transform the subjectivity of human experience in an objective topic of research? We face both conceptual and methodological difficulties. Science can account for the processes that allow us to recognize tastes and smells, but which mechanisms bring us the feeling we experience when we enjoy our favorite food? Yet, we can trace the neural basis of feelings, however we do not seem able to explain how, when and why the feeling of an experience – like a fingerprint of the brain – is unique to each of us.

This course introduces the main theoretical models and the empirical methods employed to explain and measure consciousness. Students are offered the opportunity to learn about the neurobiological mechanisms possibly underlying the emergence of consciousness and to grasp why science needs  to embrace also conceptual and philosophical levels of analysis. The course outlines the multi-faceted nature of consciousness by discussing different aspects of the phenomenon in normal as well as in abnormal conditions. Students are encouraged throughout the course to actively participate to the discussions and to make critical thinking regarding the current state of knowledge about how the brain relates to the mind.