“I believed there were no Hypotheticals in the sense of consciously acting agents—conscious entities. There was only the process. The needles of evolution, endlessly knitting.”

Source: Axis (2007), Chapter 35 (p. 348)

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "I believed there were no Hypotheticals in the sense of consciously acting agents—conscious entities. There was only the…" by Robert Charles Wilson?
Robert Charles Wilson photo
Robert Charles Wilson 134
author 1953

Related quotes

“I want a sword not a knitting needle
-Kalen”

Source: The Diamond Throne

Julian Huxley photo

“Evolution is a process, of which we are products, and in which we are active agents.”

Julian Huxley (1887–1975) English biologist, philosopher, author

The New Divinity (1964)
Context: Evolution is a process, of which we are products, and in which we are active agents. There is no finality about the process, and no automatic or unified progress; but much improvement has occurred in the past, and there could be much further improvement in the future (though there is also the possibility of future failure and regression). Thus the central long-term concern of religion must be to promote further evolutionary improvement and to realise new possibilities; and this means greater fulfilment by more human individuals and fuller achievement by more human societies.

Linus Torvalds photo
Jonas Salk photo
Lewis Carroll photo

“Can you row?" the Sheep asked, handing her a pair of knitting-needles as she spoke.
"Yes, a little--but not on land--and not with needles--" Alice was beginning to say.”

Lewis Carroll (1832–1898) English writer, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer

Source: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass

Nisargadatta Maharaj photo

“(…) In reality there is only consciousness. All life is conscious, all consciousness alive.”

Nisargadatta Maharaj (1897–1981) Indian guru

Awareness and consciousness
Source: "I am That." P.47.

Max Tegmark photo

“I believe that consciousness is the way information feels when being processed.”

Max Tegmark (1967) Swedish-American cosmologist

On Math, Matter and Mind http://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0510188v2 Piet Hut (IAS), Mark Alford (WashU), Max Tegmark (MIT), Foundations of Physics 36 (2006) 765-794

Jane Roberts photo

“The fact is that your plane originated because enough entities needed certain types of experience to warrant such a creation, and they set about forming it through the process of evolution.”

Jane Roberts (1929–1984) American Writer

Session 31, Page 236
The Early Sessions: Sessions 1-42, 1997, The Early Sessions: Book 1

“p. 651Abstract. Investigations of the function of consciousness in human information processing have focused mainly on two questions: (1) where does consciousness enter into the information processing sequence and (2) how does conscious processing differ from preconscious and unconscious processing. Input analysis is thought to be initially "preconscious," "pre-attentive," fast, involuntary, and automatic. This is followed by "conscious," "focal-attentive" analysis which is relatively slow, voluntary, and flexible. It is thought that simple, familiar stimuli can be identified preconsciously, but conscious processing is needed to identify complex, novel stimuli. Conscious processing has also been thought to be necessary for choice, learning and memory, and the organization of complex, novel responses, particularly those requiring planning, reflection, or creativity. The present target article reviews evidence that consciousness performs none of these functions. Consciousness nearly always results from focal-attentive processing (as a form of output) but does not itself  enter into this or any other form of human information processing. This suggests that the term "conscious process" needs re-examination. Consciousness appears to be necessary in a variety of tasks because they require focal-attentive processing; if consciousness is absent, focal-attentive processing is absent. Viewed from a first-person perspective, however, conscious states are causally effective. First-person accounts are complementary to third-person accounts. Although they can be translated into third-person accounts, they cannot be reduced to them.”

Max Velmans (1942) British psychologist

Is human information processing conscious?, 1991

Related topics