Neuroscience of Consciousness
January 1, 2016
Erik Hoel, Larissa Albantakis, William Marshall et al.
153 citations
Causal interactions in complex systems like the brain can be examined at different spatiotemporal levels. While it is often assumed that the micro level is causally complete, this work shows that causal power can be stronger at macro levels. Using a measure called ΦMax, developed within integrated information theory, the authors systematically evaluated causal power at micro and macro levels in simplified neuronal-like systems. For systems with indeterminism or degeneracy, ΦMax peaked at a macro level when coarse-graining micro elements produced macro mechanisms with high irreducible causal selectivity.
Entropy
March 18, 2021
Leonardo S. Barbosa, William Marshall, Larissa Albantakis et al.
74 citations
Integrated Information Theory (IIT) begins with essential properties of consciousness and translates them into postulates that any physical system must satisfy to specify the physical substrate of consciousness. A recently introduced information measure captures three of these postulates—existence, intrinsicality, and information—and is unique. This work shows that the measure also satisfies the remaining postulates of integration and exclusion, creating a framework that identifies maximally irreducible mechanisms. These mechanisms can form maximally irreducible systems, which then specify the physical substrate of conscious experience.
Neuroscience of consciousness
January 1, 2021
Francesco Ellia, Jeremiah Hendren, Matteo Grasso et al.
61 citations
Subjective experience can be objectively explained in physical terms by moving beyond cognitive functions and understanding how experience is structured. Integrated information theory provides a framework to account for both the essential properties of every experience and the specific properties that make particular experiences feel the way they do, avoiding the fallacy that only objective properties should be explained by science.
Entropy
February 11, 2023
William Marshall, Matteo Grasso, William G. P. Mayner et al.
19 citations
Integrated information theory (IIT) proposes that consciousness is identical to the cause-effect structure generated by a maximally irreducible substrate (a Φ-structure). This work introduces a definition for system-integrated information (φs) grounded in IIT's postulates of existence, intrinsicality, information, and integration. It examines how determinism, degeneracy, and connectivity fault lines affect system-integrated information. The proposed measure identifies complexes as systems whose φs exceeds that of any overlapping candidate systems.
arXiv Preprint Archive
July 31, 2025
Larissa Albantakis
Toy models—highly simplified representations that retain only essential features of a system—are increasingly used in consciousness research. This chapter examines their role in developing and evaluating scientific theories of consciousness, particularly Integrated Information Theory (IIT) and Global Workspace Theory (GWT). These models make abstract concepts more tangible, allowing researchers to test assumptions, clarify theoretical frameworks, and probe the coherence and implications of competing accounts. They also address specific experiential features, such as spatial extendedness and temporal flow, and sharpen philosophical debates, including the distinction between functional and structural theories. By bridging abstract claims and empirical inquiry, toy models provide essential insights into building comprehensive theories of consciousness.