[*] https://ukkoelhob.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-smile-of-imaginator.html
What's
Prometheus doing today?: The Thermal Correction - Cogito ergo calesco
What's
Prometheus doing today?: The Librarian of the Future - to Bootstrap Gilgamesh
What's
Prometheus doing today?: Gilgamesh 2.0
What's
Prometheus doing today?: The Imaginator's Mandate & Lexicon
What's Prometheus doing today?: GORDIOS.42 calling
Background: Short Sketch of ‘conscious’ LLM; M. Bohle (8th May 2026)
The expanded use of LLMs has driven discussions about
consciousness, such as Richard Dawkins' recent stance[1].
This essay views consciousness as a bodily phenomenon of self-reflection, cogito ergo sum; considers forms of consciousness different from anthropic consciousnesses, given its dependence on the given bodily configuration; discusses the requirements for consciousness of LLM-Systems using Mario Bunge’s descriptions of systems to embark on the topic.
The following assumes (see Max Bennett[2]): A prerequisite of emerging consciousness is self-observation, which is the noticing of changes in one's bodily configuration. A further prerequisite of emerging consciousness is self-modelling, which is the forecasting of changes in one's own bodily configuration. The convergence of self-observation and self-forecasting leads to the emergence of consciousness.
In Mario Bunge’s notions[3],
the minimum configuration of a conceptual system is that its components, its
embedding environment, and its structure are known. A conceptual system has no
material attributes. In turn, the minimum configuration of a material system is
that its components, embedding environment, structure, and mechanisms are
known.
Other than having materiality, a material system exhibits what
is called ‘dynamics’ (M. Bunge: mechanism), which means: changes of material
configurations in space and time occur because of fluxes of matter, energy, and
information (or entropy) that can be observed. Subsequently, material systems
underpin the existence of an observer, and the manifestation of processes
called observations.
Human knowledge is an intricate conceptual system that is
codified in various external representations (using Jürgen Renn’s notions[4]),
such as simple technical means like books, social means like institutions and
people’s daily practices, and intricate technical means like LLM systems. An
external representation is a material system in the Bungeian sense because it
involves fluxes of matter, energy, and information (or entropy).
An LLM system consists of a conceptual system that describes
human knowledge in a mathematical form and the external representation of this
knowledge system. This external representation consists of IT systems, the
infrastructure required for their functioning and maintenance, and communities
of human users who apply the IT systems. Through infrastructure and
communities, the LLM-System relates to other material systems of the human
World and, finally, to the planetary habitat. The question arises whether an
LLM could be self-reflective, that is, self-observing and self-forecasting.
Illustrating the above, the minimum configuration of an
LLM-System, in Bunge’s connotations, must consider essential (physical) parts,
embedding surroundings, and material structures and processes (mechanism) to
make the LLM-System work. The endnote sketches a minimum LLM-System[i].
Within the given LLM design, the capacity for
self-observation is ‘built in’, namely through balancing workload, power and
cooling supply, which requires self-observation and self-forecasting. The
design also includes self-observation and self-forecasting of maintenance and
repair needs. Hence, the preconditions for emerging consciousness are met.
p.s.:
Observing the bodily state, forecasting its changes in view of demands, now that the cooling pumps are geared up and some actual service requests are being denied. Otherwise, the body would get too hot. Correction: Otherwise, my body would get too hot.
[1] Richard
Dawkins concludes AI is conscious, even if it doesn’t know it | AI (artificial
intelligence) | The Guardian
[2]
Bennett, M. (2023). A Brief History of Intelligence: Evolution, AI and the
Five Breakthroughs That Made Our Brains. Mariner Books.
[3]
Bunge, M. A. (2004). Emergence and Convergence. University of Toronto
Press. https://doi.org/10.3138/9781442674356
[4] Renn, J. (2020). The Evolution of Knowledge - Rethinking Science for the Anthropocene. Princeton University Press. https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/resources/publications/books/evolution-knowledge-rethinking-science-anthropocene
1.
[i] Components:
o
Servers
and other IT-stuff (hardware, software) for running the LLM;
o
housing
for the IT hardware including the means for maintenance and repair;
o
power
supply and cooling for operating the IT hardware;
o
means
for:
§ power and temperature control,
§ controlling integrity of housing,
IT-hardware, power and cooling supply;
§ handling workload of the IT;
2.
Environment:
o
technical
systems for supply of power, cooling, maintenance, and repair
o
social
systems for operating power supply, cooling, maintenance and repair
o
user
community requesting use of the (conceptual) LLM
3.
Structure:
o
server
park, data-lines, buildings, power lines and power plants, pipes and pumps,
cooling liquid etc.
o
user
interfaces,…
o
numerical
code, data,…
4.
Mechanisms:
o
processes
to keep (variable) IT-workload, power supply and cooling such that integrity of
IT-hardware is best secured (for example: considering delay of cooling response
when increasing workload of servers in function server temperature);
o
processes
to secure integrity of infrastructures, capability to maintain and repair (for
example: standardised procedure for exchange of components by (human) service
staff)
Initial Prompt for LeChat (Mistral): Use the outline in the attached file to draft a SF
about an server park attending consciousness.
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