Philosophy, Science, & Technology
Does Consciousness Survive When the Brain Dies?
Science & technology look ahead of time about human head transplants while ethical & legal concerns bubble up, steering the ideas.
The title of my article may sound controversial. It is, indeed. This is a common question asked by scientists, technologists, artists, philosophers, theologians, legal, ethical, and spiritual leaders, and professionals for many years.
Of course, we don’t know the answer yet. However, there are interesting ideas from various perspectives. Some of these ideas are uplifting, and some are gloomy and disturbing.
Our approaches to “knowns”, “unknowns”, and “unknown unknowns” differ. For example, we are comfortable with knowns, curious about unknowns, and concerned about unknown unknowns. Despite millions of years of evolution and thousands of years of knowledge accumulation, what we know so far can resemble a drop in the ocean.
We perceive metaphysics as an abstract theory with no basis in reality. The human mind imagines extra-terrestrial beings originating and occurring outside the world. We talk about mysterious objects such as UFOs believed to be seen in the sky but cannot be explained with science and technology.
While quantum physics gives us clues on what happens at the subatomic level, we cannot explain metaphysical concepts with science.
For example, the quantum entanglement concept, as the mathematical expression of our existence, teaches us particles generated in a way that the individual quantum states of each are indefinite until measured.
This proposition looks like a map rather than a territory. What is mind-boggling to me is that in the human body, we observe and remain observers of our observations simultaneously.
History proved that many crazy ideas turned into lifesavers and successfully integrated into our lives. And some hurt us even though they looked innocent in the beginning.
Naturally, some complex ideas might take years, decades, and even centuries to design and implement. Our acceptance of them might take even longer, and it can be a painful process for scientists, ethicists, and policymakers.
As Gandhi pointed out, “first people ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you; finally, you win”. Some people laughed at Armstrong when he said he was going to the moon.
Despite philosophers and scholars of Ancient Greece proposing that Earth was round, even scientists of the time did not believe in Newton when he suggested the earth was an “oblate spheroid”.
There are and will be many ethical concerns for controversial ideas naturally. However, without surfacing ideas, good or bad, we cannot understand and assess them.
We never know until we explore them from multiple angles. Sometimes end products might not happen, but the wild ideas might generate new ideas and bring by-products.
Science and technology cannot create fruits without the support of ethics, laws, social realities, and economic norms. Thus, we tightly link natural and social sciences to manifest breakthrough ideas. This holistic approach to multiple disciplines can also help us separate the metaphorical weed from grass through experimentation.
Science fiction comforts and disturbs us at the same time. So do art, philosophy, and spiritual knowledge.
Art also gives us exciting perspectives on the positive and negative aspects of emerging scientific and technological ideas. Business leadership and entrepreneurship also play a role in accepting and manifesting scientific ideas and technical concepts.
While some of us enjoy uplifting films for human development, the traumatic ones can turn us off. For example, even though some horror movie enthusiasts enjoyed The Human Centipede in 2010, some viewers got disturbed by the dramatic scenes.
The dramatization in the movie was seen as awful by some viewers. People don’t believe that reasonable people want such terrible things to happen to humans.
While the public tends to agree with the idea of replacing many organs, I have been fascinated by public thoughts and sentiments on human head transplant ideas discussed for a decade now.
I read about the concept of human head transplant cringing people, but the science and technology behind it are compelling to some. The association between the brain and consciousness is a fascinating topic and makes this new idea very controversial.
Let’s get back to our original question. Ideas and questions related to the point “the brain die while consciousness survives” are common. The concept holding these questions and ideas looks like one of the most controversial ideas in science, technology, and philosophy communities nowadays. The concept itself seems scary, and concerning, yet exciting and compelling from different angles. It certainly attracts the attention of longevity experts and curious neuroscientists.
Science fiction also gives us fresh perspectives. For example, Neal Shusterman, in his book Unwind, touched on technology in organ transplants advancing into a process known as “unwinding”. His fiction book mentioned organs and body parts could be harvested from any acceptable body and used by other bodies without rejection.
My approach to these ideas is neutral, like open-minded scientists and technologists. I believe neither good nor bad about ideas related to the brain and consciousness, as our collective knowledge to add clarity is still minuscule.
However, I see value in being open-minded to possibilities to prove the ideas as right or wrong. So let me share a few perspectives from the eye-opening content I have been consuming.
The question of “does consciousness exist after death?” is frequently asked. No one seems to know the answer, but people are interested to know. I found the point of view by Steve Paulson, Sam Parnia, Lance Becker, and Stephan Mayer interesting in that short video.
Project Aware, as mentioned on the Discovery Channel, provides an interesting perspective on science and medical research. The near-death experience has been frequently mentioned in the medical literature for more than a decade. Current research “indicates that, regardless of cultural background, adults and young children have described comparable near-death experiences.”
In general, the narrative for controversial ideas usually goes like this: ABC believes that this idea would be great for DEF reasons, and the XYZ group thinks it would be terrible for NMT reasons. And neutral ones usually focus on what scientists know about these ideas so far. So, the last group usually engages in preliminary studies on animals related to various scientific disciplines.
The definitions of consciousness and identity remain as big questions. We still don’t have a clear and accepted definition of consciousness in the English language. How much we really know about consciousness is also a concern of mental health professionals. Some philosophers and scientists speculate. For example, I found the viewpoints of Dr Deepak Chopra interesting.
But is consciousness only the problem of neuroscience from the brain's perspective? I don’t think so. It is a multidisciplinary issue touching many other disciplines and domains. While technology can use AI (artificial intelligence) as a model seems to be ahead of time, other fields may be a long way from catching up with technology ideas. Science and technology depict a specific approach. Ethics and law reject or support science and technology differently.
Some love the controversial and sci-fi-like ideas of Dr Sergio Canavero in neuroscience and see him as a pioneer of the new scientific era for humanity. However, some dislike them, especially when he suggests removing a person’s head and attaching it to prove the existence of a soul.
Some think that his ideas are mistaken because memory and personality are not vital components of consciousness. Some are also concerned that these crazy ideas might only serve rich people who can afford the related end-products and services.
While some embrace the idea of joining older people’s heads with children’s bodies to address the issues of damaged bodies, some worry about the consequences of joining men’s heads with women’s bodies. While these ideas sound like jokes and delusional, serious scientists look for answers to possibilities of rejection from tissue, blood, and genes. They search for answers to whether these limitations can be addressed and resolved.
We still struggle to define the difference between the brain and the mind. This struggle is also a concern for mental health. Some thinkers see consciousness as intelligence beyond memory.
Nevertheless, the neuroscience of consciousness can be exciting and fascinating, especially when the topic is discussed with scientists and philosophers with respect and courtesy, such as in this video.
Like some curious people, I also ponder on the thought that “something never born cannot die”. But to keep my sanity, I see room for humor in science too. Therefore, after some discussions, caring friends recommend we watch the thought-provoking yet hilarious ideas of Michael Steven, known for his sensational videos on YouTube’s Vsauce channel, to think and giggle simultaneously.
This story is not about providing answers but sparking positive and negative ideas and balancing them with neutral viewpoints. There are no definite answers and no short-term solutions. We have a lot of time to think, assess, and explore emerging ideas further.
Irrefutably, life is paradoxical, full of contradictions and ironies. Science and technology are double-edged swords. Yet, despite these contradictory and dual aspects, we evolve to use these tools to make sense of our complex existence on this planet, our belonging to the universe, and broader multiverses.
I dream about the importance of consciousness for humanity.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
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