Absence of Evidence, or Evidence of Absence; A paper on Animal Consciou

Absence of Evidence, or Evidence of Absence?A paper on Animal consciousnessConsciousness is a troublesome term to grasp so much so, that many scientists will not even attempt to define the term, much less search for its curtilage. close to however, do agree that consciousness must include certain aspects specifically cognition, self-awareness, memory, and abstract thought.Lesley J. Rogers describes consciousness as, related to awareness, intelligence, and complex cognition, as well as language. Consciousness whitethorn be manifested in self-awareness, awareness of others, intentional behavior, including intentional communication, deception of others, and in the ability to make mental and symbolic representations (13).There is no headland that humans carry these attributes, but what about animals? Some philosophers, including Descartes, birdcalled that while humans are conscious, animals are like machines, with no thought process or sentience. Others claim that animals are very capable of consciousness, and that we just have not had the capabilities to test the aspects of it through the scientific method. As Donald R. Griffin expressedConscious thinking may well be a core function of central nervous systems. For conscious animals enjoy the advantage of being able to think about substitute(a) actions and select behavior they believe will get them what they want or help them avoid what they dislike or fear. Of course human consciousness is astronomically more complex and versatile than any conceivable animal thinking, but the basic question addressedis whether the difference is qualitative and absolute, or whether animals are conscious even though the content of their consciousness is undoubtedly limited and very likely quite different of ours. (3)This paper will look at what evidence there is that may imply that some, if not all, vertebrate animals may have the capacity for conscious thinking. Cognition, for example is something that animals may require i n order to aline to their changing environments so quickly. Cognition is an animals ability to make a decision by evaluating or processing current information found on some representation of prior experience (Kamil in Pepperberg 127). Some animal studies, such as Franci... ...th other animals, because we do not share the like forms of communication. We fag not ask what other animals are thinking, what they want or feel, or even determine if they have a sense of self. What is known justifiedly now is that we do not know, but that is no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater and assume animal consciousness does not or can not exist. Until further observations or tests can be developed that will start to lead man to a closer understanding of the animal mind, it is classical to remember that absence of evidence does not imply evidence of absence.Works CitedGriffin, Donald R. Animal Minds Beyond Cognition to Consciousness. Chicago, IL University of Chicago Press, 2001.Pat terson, Francine, and Eugene Linden. The Education of Koko. New York, NY Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1981.Pepperberg, Irene. The Alex Studies cognitive and Communicative Abilities of Grey Parrots. Cambridge, MA Harvard University Press, 1999.Rogers, Lesley J. Minds of Their Own. Boulder, CO Westview Press, 1998.Wynne, Clive D.L. Animal Cognition. New York, NY Palgrave, 2001.