ABSTRACT
As one surveys the history of philosophy, it is easy to get the impression that both materialism and dualism have been viable contenders. The foremost answer is neural correlates of consciousness. The most common example of a Neural Correlates of Consciousness (NCC) is C-fiber activation in one's brain that takes place when the individual is in a mental state of pain. On the basis of such correlations, it is argued that physicalism is true and dualism is false. Fundamental to identifying NCC is finding neural activity that consistently corresponds with certain conscious states. Simply put, a neural correlate of consciousness is a neural state or process that is correlated with consciousness. The idea is that when a subject is in a particular conscious state there is a corresponding state of their brain that is correlated with their conscious state. The aim of the chapter is to introduce methods used to identify NCC.
