Time is a river which sweeps consciousness along, but consciousness is the river: Comment on “Is temporo-spatial dynamics the “common currency” of brain and mind? In Quest of “Spatiotemporal Neuroscience” ” by Georg Northoff et al.

Abstract

The extraordinary success of 20th century physics consolidated the thesis that all that there is to be known about the world is fully determined in terms of the ontology of physical theories (physicalism) [1]. Either explicitly or implicitly, this position is endorsed by most neuroscientists. However, objections to physicalism arise precisely from our immediate intuition that brain events can result in phenomena with properties different to those of physical phenomena. Descartes postulated a fundamental divide between mental and physical substance; for instance, the latter has the property of spatial extension, while the former does not. Descartes’ proposed solution to this conundrum, i.e. substance dualism, is frequently derided by the current neuroscientific community [3], yet it is fair to admit that serious objections can also be raised against all modern theses on the relationship between the mental and the physical.