Current Research

2025 Research Priorities #

Vivinesse aims to refine our understanding of consciousness through a layered, emergent lens. The items below represent active research fronts—some already underway with minimal resources, others requiring future grant support or large-scale collaboration.

Currently Funded Research #

1. Small-Scale Experiments for Early Validation #

  • Focus: Low-cost conceptual and computational inquiries.
  • Activities
    • Running basic simulations or agent-based models on personal machines.
    • Re-analyzing open-access neuroscience or cognitive data for signs of layered integration.
    • Simple behavioral or introspection-based experiments (e.g., introspective journaling, minimal pilot studies with volunteers).
  • Goal: Gather preliminary evidence that Vivinesse’s layered approach clarifies how awareness forms, even at small scales.

2. AI-Based Empirical Research #

  • Focus: Implementing self-modeling features and introspective loops in standard AI architectures.
  • Activities
    • Designing reinforcement learning agents with an embedded “self-predictive” module.
    • Testing recurrent networks or custom architectures that maintain a stable internal state aligned with Vivinesse’s concept of temporal scaffolding.
    • Investigating how partial self-awareness or reflective layers affect performance on complex tasks.
  • Goal: Empirically validate whether layering structures in AI correspond to more “conscious-like” capabilities (e.g., metacognition, consistent introspection).

3. Philosophical and Conceptual Investigations #

  • Focus: Strengthening Vivinesse’s theoretical underpinnings, definitions, and ontological commitments.
  • Activities
    • Writing comparative analyses pitting Vivinesse against theories like IIT, GWT, or panpsychism.
    • Conducting logical and phenomenological critiques, refining how “layers” are articulated.
    • Engaging with philosophical communities to polish the conceptual framework (conference presentations, peer-reviewed papers).
  • Goal: Ensure that every claim within Vivinesse stands on solid intellectual ground and withstands critical philosophical examination.

Unfunded or Future Aspirational Research #

4. Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Methods #

  • Status: Currently unfunded, but conceptually aligned with Vivinesse’s vision.
  • Proposed Activities
    • Neuroimaging Studies: fMRI, PET, or EEG experiments to identify neural correlates of multi-layered awareness.
    • Phenomenological & Neurophenomenological Approaches: Integrating first-person reports with neural data to see how “layered experiences” manifest biologically.
    • Clinical/Developmental Studies: Investigating unique brain states (e.g., split-brain patients, minimal consciousness cases, child development) for layered integration patterns.
  • Potential Impact: Provide empirical grounding for Vivinesse by demonstrating that real brains do exhibit the scaffolds and feedback loops hypothesized by the model.

5. Long-Term and Bold Research Ideas #

  • Status: Large-scale projects pending major funding or consortium support.
  • Proposed Activities
    • Networked AI “Epiconsciousness”: Linking multiple AI agents to explore emergent collective consciousness.
    • Human-AI Hybrid Systems: Brain-computer interface research to fuse human cognition with AI states, testing epiconscious phenomena.
    • Extended Longitudinal AI Studies: Multi-year continuous training environments to observe if genuine self-awareness arises over time.
    • Neuromorphic / Custom Hardware: Development of specialized chips or architectures that embody Vivinesse layering at the hardware level.
  • Potential Impact: Could revolutionize our grasp of consciousness, offering unprecedented insights into how advanced integration leads to meta- or collective awareness.

Conclusion #

At present, Vivinesse pursues smaller, funded research efforts that test core principles without heavy financial burdens. Parallel to these efforts are more ambitious, unfunded lines of inquiry—ranging from in-depth neuroscience to speculative AI-human integration—awaiting appropriate resources and collective momentum. Each category ultimately supports the Vivinesse vision: grounding the layered ontology of consciousness in empirical data and rigorous conceptual work.