Mental states can have consciousness but no thought {anoesis}|.
Mental states can be about parts that have conceptual relations {extended cognition}, such as sequences or spatial relations. Examples are machine-assembly parts diagrams.
Perhaps, there is no consciousness, but people interpret {interpretationism} cognitions as phenomena.
Just as money has monetary value, brain has mental content {money analogy}. Just as monetary value cannot exist without money, mental things cannot exist without brain. Monetary value does not relate to money physical aspects, and mental content does not relate to brain physical aspects. Rather, concept-relationship complexes give meaning to monetary value and mental things [Seager, 1999].
Sensations can have no physical effects, because physical laws are enough causes for perceptions {problem of phenomenal causation} {phenomenal causation problem}. Sensations cause no force or energy. Mental things can affect only mental things. However, phenomenal qualities must be causal, because people can know they have had experience. However, if mental life has no causation, consciousness need not be causal [Seager, 1999].
Mental states {cognitive state} can involve subjective experiences {phenomenal judgment}. People can report such mental states.
Mental states {subdoxastic state, consciousness} can be inaccessible to consciousness and unavailable for use in propositions. For example, people unconsciously compare pupil size using low-level features, during sense pre-processing. Cerebellum computational processes use low-level features.
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Date Modified: 2022.0225