On Explanation and Consciousness
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This framework develops a structural theory of explanation grounded in the idea that any system capable of describing from within must preserve coherence through recursive transformation. It argues that consciousness is not a mysterious emergent property but the lived signature of a system maintaining internal intelligibility under constraint. Explanation is reframed as a structural act, how systems model themselves, filter inputs, align predictions, and preserve viability over time. Using category theory as a formal language, the piece outlines the minimal conditions under which such internal modeling becomes possible. It extends this logic to biological systems, showing how astrocytes enact the constraints that make subjective continuity and coherence viable. The result is a theory of explanation as structural persistence, not representational content.
Author: McClure, Joseph
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6893334160
FWCI:
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: