How the brain manages to create human consciousness - a study

American neuroscientists have proposed a hypothesis that the basis of consciousness may be waves spreading through the brain that synchronize the activity of billions of neurons. The approach is based on the idea of mixed selectivity, where a single neuron can change its activity depending on context. The researchers also suggested that conscious processes may form in the sensory areas of the back of the brain.

American neuroscientists have put forward a new hypothesis about the nature of consciousness, according to which its foundation may be waves spreading through the brain that synchronize the activity of billions of neurons. The study, reported by the portal IFL Science, relies on the concept of mixed selectivity: the same neuron can change its activity differently depending on incoming signals and current context, simultaneously participating in several cognitive processes. When two waves interact, their peaks can coincide and amplify the overall signal, and if the peak of one wave overlaps with the trough of another, activity is partially compensated. According to scientists, such interactions can form various brain states. The researchers also suggested that conscious processes may form in the sensory areas of the back of the brain, responsible for processing visual and auditory information, rather than in the frontal lobes, as previously thought.