What is Consciousness?

<p>The rise of AI has lead to widespread concern, ranging from fears of job losses and environmental destruction, to a total replacement of humanity.</p><p><br>This has raised important (though hardly new) questions for science and philosophy, surrounding the future of humanity, the feasibility of creating “Generalized Artificial Intelligence,” and the nature of consciousness itself.</p><p><br>In this presentation, Jeremy Swinarton explains the problem of consciousness, what science tells us, and how Marxist philosophy can help us understand the question.</p><p><br>📖 Further reading:<br><a href="https://marxist.com/reason-in-revolt-marxist-philosophy-and-modern-science/13.-the-genesis-of-mind.htm" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Ted Grant &amp; Alan Woods — Reason in Revolt: Marxist Philosophy and Modern Science </a> (Chapter 13: The Genesis of Mind)</p><p>(<a href="https://store.marxist.ca/products/reason-in-revolt" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Buy a copy</a>)</p><p><a href="https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1876/part-played-labour/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Engels — The Part played by Labour in the Transition from Ape to Man</a></p><p><a href="https://marxist.com/artificial-intelligence-doomsday-for-humanity-or-for-capitalism.htm" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Daniel Morley — Artificial Intelligence: doomsday for humanity, or for capitalism? </a></p><p><a href="https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1845/theses/theses.htm" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Karl Marx — Theses On Feuerbach</a><br></p><p><br>🫵 <a href="https://www.marxist.ca/join" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Join</a>the Revolutionary Communist Party<br>📰 <a href="http://marxist.ca/subscribe" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Subscribe</a> to Communist Revolution, the newspaper of the RCP<br>▶️ <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@CanadaMarxists" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">YouTube</a><br>📱 <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/marxist-audio-archive/id1527915674" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Apple Podcasts</a><br>📸<a href="https://www.instagram.com/communistrevolution/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Instagram</a><br>💬 <a href="https://x.com/CanadaMarxists" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">X</a><br>💻<a href="https://www.facebook.com/CanadaMarxists" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Facebook</a><br></p><p><br>Recorded live in Toronto on June 12, 2026.</p>