The H I Mind Theory of Conscious Story-Telling.
John Cochrane Jan-April 2025
This theory is the second of four theories about human consciousness associated with the H I Mind Model. The four theories are independent, in the sense that each addresses a different aspect of consciousness and do not rely on each other. Each theory contributes, subject to verification, to an overall understanding of the function and experience of human consciousness.
This theory suggests the primary processes that can help explain how Core Consciousness may work.
Simulations.
I suggest that each of the focuses basically works through a process of simulation. Our Subconscious receives input from our senses which it processes in a variety of ways to give the best data that it can that represents the current state of our body and our surroundings.
Each of our focuses then takes the information from the Subconscious and creates another simulation, or a number of simulations, of how the data can be interpreted into something of known significance. The focuses identify opportunities, threats, and unknowns as part of this simulation process within the categories of interest of each particular focus.
In simple cases, our Core Consciousness combines the simulations of each of the other focuses into an overall simulation of us as an individual in an environment. This combined simulation will also include potential actions that we can take from moment to moment to interact within our perceived environment. These simulations can include predictions of energy usage and opportunities to be potentially lost or gained.
Working Memory.
Core Consciousness has an additional role, and that is to try and sort through the various simulations currently being produced by the other focuses and to select an optimal outcome. Working Memory plays a vital role in supporting the Core Consciousness to perform this task of optimisation. It is Working Memory that can store different predictions of the outcome of different behavioural choices. It is Working Memory that can keep track of how different choices and different simulations might play out over time.
Language-Based Logic.
One feature of human consciousness that is worth noting is that there is great variability in the quality of consciousness that we experience moment by moment. We may be very aware of our detailed visual field, or the conversations that we are a part of, or our own inner running commentary observing our own experience.A key role for our Core Consciousness is to apply logic to our thinking. To reason and plan and manage our awareness. It seems to me that this capability is intrinsically linked to our ability to express thoughts as language. In the H I Mind Model this implies that consciousness and the logical thinking that we experience is strongly enabled by the Cultural Focus and the Noble Focus.
Story-Telling.
Combining the mechanisms of simulations, working memory, and language-based logic suggests that a primary mechanism used by Core Consciousness to fulfil its function of management and planning is through a form of story-telling. The story-line provides us with an ongoing ability to track our own conscious processing which is essential for our basic experience of conscious processing.