A Measure of Man

I expect that as cognitive science research advances, we will develop a quantifiable measure of consciousness, which will enable us to compare the consciousness of one animal with that of another. What form it will take is not certain, although it may be something that matches up fairly well with the ratio of synaptic connections to brain volume.* But an informal measure of how human consciousness compares with that of the lower animals can come from appreciating our need to externalize our memories. Using symbolism and formal languages, humans convert paper, computers, and even patches of dirt that can display our scribbles to external brains. Whether it is to temporarily enhance our working memories or to preserve our thoughts for posterity, this activity clearly demonstrates the human experience of the environment as something far transcending that of the other animals. While the simpler beasts are content to experience and remember life with only the equipment with which they were born, humanity, through a necessity borne out of the nature of its intelligence, had to invent an artificial memory.

*There is a measure called the encephalization quotient, which relates an animal's brain mass to its body mass and compares it to other animals of similar size. While interesting, I believe that it falls considerably short of a "metric of consciousness," which is admittedly difficult to define.