Tononi’s Phi theory seems somewhat relevant, though it only addresses consciousness and explicitly avoids valence. It does seem like something that could be adapted toward answering questions like this (somehow).
Current models of emotion based on brain architecture and neurochemicals (e.g., EMOCON) are relevant, though ultimately correlative and thus not applicable outside of the human brain.
In short, I’ve found plenty of plenty of research around the topic but nothing that’s particularly predictive outside of very constrained contexts. No generalized theories. There’s some interesting stuff happening around panpsychism (e.g., see these two pieces by Chalmers) but they focus on consciousness, not valence.
My intuition is valence will be encoded within frequency dynamics in a way that will be very amiable to mathematical analysis, but right now I’m seeking clarity about how to speak about the problem.
Note that all worthwhile original research starts with a literature review. What have you found so far?
Tononi’s Phi theory seems somewhat relevant, though it only addresses consciousness and explicitly avoids valence. It does seem like something that could be adapted toward answering questions like this (somehow).
Current models of emotion based on brain architecture and neurochemicals (e.g., EMOCON) are relevant, though ultimately correlative and thus not applicable outside of the human brain.
There’s also a great deal of quality literature about specific correlates of pain and happiness- e.g., Building a neuroscience of pleasure and well-being and An fMRI-Based Neurologic Signature of Physical Pain.
In short, I’ve found plenty of plenty of research around the topic but nothing that’s particularly predictive outside of very constrained contexts. No generalized theories. There’s some interesting stuff happening around panpsychism (e.g., see these two pieces by Chalmers) but they focus on consciousness, not valence.
My intuition is valence will be encoded within frequency dynamics in a way that will be very amiable to mathematical analysis, but right now I’m seeking clarity about how to speak about the problem.
Edit: I’ll add this to the bottom of the post