I don't know if 'awareness of one's own finitude' is an explicit consideration for many people, although knowing that there's a lot they don't know might be — Wayfarer

Hello, it's nice to be part of this community!

I reflected on that. Of course, each of us every minute, making a decision, for example, about what socks to wear does not think about the fact that his life is finite. But at the same time, making more serious decisions about what to do, for example, whether to go to study, marry, whether to have children, we involuntarily mean this. That is, over virtually every decision, every decision hangs the realization that you are not eternal.

I wonder: "isn't this exactly what creates colossal tension inside us and sets the very thirst to do something, and not to do it?"

We choose to do it. And here the question arises to do, but how exactly if the task is not defined? That is, at birth, some instruction does not come out for us where it is indicated how to do the right thing or why we are here in general.

This is where I assume that the very feature of the "existential choice" lies in its uncertainty.

In this regard, an example with AI is indicative. If there is no request, there is no task, then it does not act on its own, does not perform any calculation, unlike us: there seems to be no task, but we act.

I have carefully read your reflections, and I am very impressed with how deep and passionate you are discussing the nature of consciousness. Especially inspiring is the clarity with which Patterner articulates the idea of ​ ​ the fundamentality of consciousness, and the variety of perspectives that you all bring. I want to offer another look at this topic and ask: what if consciousness is not a substance or a property, but a process? Let me clarify, based on your ideas, and see where this can lead us.

Patterner, you remarkably described consciousness as a universal "sensory experience" inherent in everything from stones to people. Your analogy with vision, where consciousness remains unchanged, and only what is realized changes, is very bright. But what if consciousness is not something static, like a property or essence, but a dynamic process that manifests itself only in systems that can actively interact with the world? For example, in organisms with neural networks or behavioral responses, where consciousness is associated with information processing, adaptation or reflection.

You mentioned that a stone "survives itself" like a stone, but does not have mental activity, perception or movement. But what if it is the lack of active interaction that makes the idea of ​ ​ stone consciousness functionally redundant? If consciousness is a process associated with dynamics (for example, perception, feedback or choice), then a stone whose existence is static and determined by external physical laws may not need consciousness. Even if we assume that he has some kind of "experience," it does not affect his being - unlike, say, a person or animal, where consciousness is associated with adaptive processes.

Which brings me to another thought covered in the discussion, like plants. Tree growth is a process, but it is genetically programmed and does not involve active choice or reflection. But what if consciousness arises only where there is an opportunity to manipulate the environment or react to it at your own "discretion"? Then plants whose dynamics are deterministic may not require consciousness, even if we admit that they have some basic experience.

My idea is that consciousness as a process is associated with the dynamics of interaction and adaptation. This eliminates the need to ascribe consciousness to static or strictly deterministic systems such as rocks or plants, and focuses us on what makes consciousness meaningful - its role in active being. But what if this approach helps us avoid a substantialist framework in which consciousness is seen as "something" - be it a universal property or an emergent quality?

that's right. by algorithmic choice I meant a decision made on the basis of cause-and-effect relationships.
modern AI in the absence of complete data make decisions based on confidence probabilities. But nevertheless, such an approach is verified objectively. that is, the path to the solution can be tracked from start to finish.

But my wife, for example, often tells me that she wants to do this and not another, simply because she "feels" so. This always amuses me, but nevertheless it works!

what if the basis of such human behavior, unlike computer behavior, lies in the unknown for a person of his own ultimate goal, and the desire to act (make a decision without a task) is based on a person's understanding of his own finitude?

this is the development of Heidegger's ideas to modern challenges (AI and machine decision making)

And what if we give to AI a mortal incarnation, and write down their goal so that they can never know it?