Consciousness: What Is It, Really?

PLEASE NOTE RECENT LOCATION CHANGE & ATTENDANCE FEE!
Please join us this Sunday as we discuss the mysteries of consciousness.
We will meet at the Queensberry Hotel, 593 Swanston Street, Carlton (100m north of previous location) at 2pm for a 2:15pm start sharp.
We kindly ask attendees to pay $5 to attend to help with MeetUp costs & venue costs. This is not mandatory, but if you are a regular member it would be appreciated. Any extra moneys will go towards buying food and drinks for the table. The venue also expects us to spend money as a group, so grateful if everyone could buy a drink from the venue.
There is no pre-requisite preparation necessary, nor a philosophical background, all that is required is a curious mind. These discussions are both a Socrates Cafe style discussion and lively metaphysical dojo, in the spirit of learning and friendly debate, so please feel free to challenge assumptions and be prepared to have your own assumptions challenged.
Find below some questions to consider (these will be updated), however these are free-ranging events and the below serve as a springboard for the discussion.
- Is consciousness something the brain does, or something the brain has?
- Does consciousness come in degrees, or is it an all-or-nothing property?
- Could a sufficiently advanced AI be conscious?
- Is the mystery of consciousness an objective feature of reality, or a limitation of human cognition?
- what empirical discovery would most threaten your current view?
- Do our answers on what consciousness is fundamentally depend on our worldview?