[smart (OP)]

Do mind-altering drugs (antipsychotics) alter conscious freedom by attempting to modulate thoughts? What exactly is conscious freedom in regard of the existence of higher consciousness functions? Is it possible to hijack conscious freedom by fabrication of a virtual reality? Does consciousness have higher levels of observers related to the momentum of time?

[RD]

Does mind-altering drugs (antipsychotics) alter conscious freedom by attempting to modulate thoughts?

antipsychotics are supposed to slow-down racing thoughts , ( which your previous post consists of ).

[smart (OP)]

Does technology exploit our psychological vulnerabilities?

[Tinker-Bell]

Does consciousness have higher levels of observers related to the momentum of time?

Please elaborate more? I'm not sure what you're asking?

Ribbit 

[evan_au]

do mind-altering drugs (antipsychotics) alter conscious freedom by attempting to modulate thoughts

I suggest that mind-altering drugs (which includes any addictive drug or addictive behavior) alters conscious freedom by modulating thoughts to always focus on the subject of the addiction.

For those with an addictive personality, their addictive behavior (like gambling or you name it) have similar neurological reaction to exposure to addictive substances.

[smart (OP)]

Conscious freedom stops where brainwashing and disinformation starts.

[puppypower]

Does mind-altering drugs (antipsychotics) alter conscious freedom by attempting to modulate thoughts? What exactly is conscious freedom in regard of the existence of higher consciousness functions? Is it possible to hi-jack conscious freedom by fabrication of a virtual reality? Does consciousness have higher levels of observers related to the momentum of time?

There are two conscious centers within the modern human brain. The primary center is called the inner self. The inner self is the same center used by animals. This center is connected to genetics and natural instincts. The secondary center is called the ego and is unique to humans. The ego appears to be relative new, in terms of evolution, with the first inferred signs appearing with the formation of civilization. The secondary center gives us free will and choice, which means we can make choices with or apart from the primary center. The primary center will tell us when we are hungry based on chemical feedback from the body; stomach growl. The secondary can choose to eat now or wait until lunch.

There is also a virtual third center, which Freud called the super ego. This virtual center is connected to cultural knowledge and choices, which come into the brain, from the outside. For example, each culture will have their own unique taught behavior, which can impact the choices of the people who live in that culture. For example, some people can't each pork, due to cultural taboos, even though the body can digest pork based on human DNA. The inner self can deal with pork, but the ego may follow the superego and choose to deny this possibility.

Conscious freedom begins with knowing about these three factors, and then making choices that optimize the personality. This is not a simple one size fits all solution. One set of ancient symbolism, about this dynamics, is connected to Jesus on the cross between two thieves. This symbolizes the process of gaining conscious freedom, being a state of tension, between two alternatives, neither of which is always optimized with each other. The inner self can eat pork and impel one to try bacon, but this can cause guilt due to the superego training. There is tension, trying to find a path in the middle. 

The inner self, as one thief, is natural, but may not always be optimized to the needs of culture. We can't pee where we stand, like a natural animal, due to sanitation needs. On the other hand, the superego, as the other thief, that is not always optimized to the needs of natural. It can be based on the needs of power and money; strip mining or political  propaganda. Conscious freedom is process, that begins as a state of suspension between overlapping and/or conflicting impulses and habits. It goal requires being reborn.

In the traditional symbolism, one thief is arrogant and wants to see Jesus (ego) do magic to impress the audience, while the other thief is aware of his own guilt and sees nothing wrong with Jesus (ego) in the middle. The former is the superego, while the later is the inner self. The ways of the superego is often about manipulating the majority to feed the needs of the few. The inner self is about the natural needs common to all. According to the symbolism, the inner self is with the ego at rebirth. The superego is left behind. This is also Buddhism in a nutshell.

One interesting footnote is dog training and the training of other domestic animals. The dog has a single center, analogous to the inner self. Dog training, is based on inducing a virtual secondary center. Like with the cultural superego, this virtual secondary can add features that complement its nature, or it can turn a natural dog into sometinh unnatural, neurotic and bestial. This is why the superego is given up, at rebirth. it is then rebuild from scratch; optimized with help of the inner self. If a neurotic dogs needs to be retrained, the dog is allowed to go back its instinctive roots, so it can recenter itself, then a healthy superego training is added.

[mrsmith2211]

Let us say you without the influence of drugs would make choice a. Under the influence of drugs you make choice b. Get drunk and you might do things you would not do if sober. So imhop drugs can alter your decision making process. The avoidance of suicide or violent behavior by prescribed medications also fall under that umbrella. It would seem to be the alteration of conscious freedom has it's ups and downs.

[Donnah]

Escape From Freedom by Erich Fromm is an excellent book.  Incredibly dry for about the first half while he explains his methodology, but fascinating thereafter. 

[puppypower]

Escape From Freedom by Erich Fromm is an excellent book.  Incredibly dry for about the first half while he explains his methodology, but fascinating thereafter. 

Conscious freedom requires an understanding of your conscious and unconscious restraints. Alcohol, for example, allows many people a way to lower their inhibitions. Some inhibitions are connected to social restraints; good manners,  which prevent full conscious freedom. If the same person overdoes the drinking, they can become constrained by strong and linear emotions, which is a new set of restraints. 

Drugs often work the same way. There is a dose that can help some people overcome restraints. Mind altering drugs, for some, allows them to break free of the restraints imposed by the box.. But if the dose is exceeded, it can lead to new restraints, such as a disconnect from reality.

Conscious freedom is a process of self discovery, where you find the various restraints which prevent conscious freedom. Some are imposed by the cultural superego; PC games. Others are imposed by instinct and the inner self, and  still other are impose by the ego onto itself due to its own perception of the world.

[smart (OP)]

Careful introspection of the subconscious system with experimental neural feedback is critical to the neuroscience of higher-level conscious freedom. The ability to determine the experimental value of mental introspection in the definition of conscious freedom is certainly misunderstood. Pure freedom over our mental matrix and control of our neurocognitive brain circuits require self-awareness of our cognitive flexibility and conscious detachment from our neurophysiological logic acting as a firewall to block us from accessing and exploiting the subconscious system. Psychoactive drugs acts on our conscious freedom by unblocking the subconscious firewall and allowing unrestricted research and investigation of our own psyche.

[Leck1962]

Consciousness has very little to do with "cells". My view is that consciousness is electro-photonic and "cells" are not a "home" of it.

[smart (OP)]

My view is that consciousness is electro-photonic and "cells" are not a "home" of it.

Interesting view. Could you please explain how and why you think the nature of consciousness is electro-photonic?

[puppypower]

Consciousness is inherent in the way neurons are designed. Neurons expend considerable energy pumping and exchanging sodium; Na+ and potassium; K+ cations. The energy used is stored in the membrane as a membrane potential. It is also stored as an entropy potential. The entropy potential is due to the segregation of the cations by the pumping action. The second law states that the entropy of the universe needs to increase, which amount to blending these two cations to form a uniform solution. But the neuron uses energy to separate and segregate them, which lowers entropy at the membrane.  Entropy can be made lower, in spite of the second law, but it takes energy to do so.

These two stored potentials are the foundation of consciousness. When a neuron fires, the membrane potential reverses and the entropy increases as the separated cations blend into each other's territory. Our sensory systems send signals to the brain, which fires neurons, allowing the neurons to reverse the two potentials. Also, if a neuron was to push its own internal potentials up the energy and entropy hill too far, it would go up and over and the neuron would spontaneously fire itself, spark of consciousness. Both helps to lower the dual potentials.

Since neurons are all wired together, the firing of any neuron, to lower its two potentials, sends energy and entropy signals down its branches, which has the impact of pushing other neurons up and over their energy hills so they fire.  The entropy signal also has the impact of increasing entropy, along the way, which is the basis for the continuous sense of change associated with consciousness. For example, our fixed memory of past events often evolves with time; time heals all wounds, because there is a constant entropy flux stemming from firing neurons, which increases the entropy of the memory wiring, so it changes over time.

Computer memory is designed to be stable.  Neuron memory is designed to be unstable, so it can change quicker with changing situations based on chemical logic. If computer memory was designed like neurons, you could not store a hard drive, in the long term, since it would try to spontaneously change to lower the energy and entropy potentials built into the bits and bytes. This flux of spontaneous change is what we perceive as consciousness.

A robot is about programming stable memory so the routines can only evolve using its own internal logic. The memory is not designed to help at the chemical level. Consciousness is about having a global flux of entropy, as a wild card, to create new relationships in physical memory, which may not even follow from the programmed logic. One can think outside the box of programming; intelligence, since the flux of entropy potential comes from all directions, from subunits, even smaller than a line of logic.