This book, first published in 1996, has become one of the most prominent philosophical treatises of the end of the 20th century. Today it is impossible to find serious work on the problem of consciousness in which there would be no references to Chalmers.
“The Conscious Mind” is a fascinating story about the deepest philosophical paradoxes and mysteries of consciousness. It is a provocative study in which an attempt is made to justify the “naturalistic dualism” based on the author’s thesis about the non-physical nature of consciousness and its dependence on the functional schemes in the brain. Chalmers also claims that his theory opens up new perspectives for the interpretation of quantum mechanics and suggests the possibility of conscious robots. Clarity of exposition, bold ideas, originality of thought experiments, accuracy of reasoning and wide erudition of the author of this book has made it a real gift for anyone interested in philosophy.