--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We don't have a \"consciousness meter\"…" description: "\"We don't have a \"consciousness meter\" that'll tell us exactly how conscious something is. I think we might get there eventually.\" — Edward Boyden" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/edward-boyden-17454_conscious_we-don-t-have-a-consciousness-meter-that_2878284.png" --- # We don't have a "consciousness meter" that'll tell us… ![“We don't have a "consciousness meter" that'll tell us exactly how conscious something is. I think we might get there eventually.” quote by Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/edward-boyden-17454_conscious_we-don-t-have-a-consciousness-meter-that_2878284.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/edward-boyden-17454_conscious_we-don-t-have-a-consciousness-meter-that_2878284.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bc/edward-boyden-17454_conscious_we-don-t-have-a-consciousness-meter-that_2878284.png) > “We don't have a "consciousness meter" that'll tell us exactly how conscious something is. I think we might get there eventually.” [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Consciousness measurement is currently unavailable but may be possible in the future. **In simple terms:** We lack a tool to measure consciousness now. Key Takeaway Explore interdisciplinary research to develop consciousness metrics. Themes science philosophy future tech Mood speculative thoughtful Type scientific philosophical When to use this quote - AI ethics - brain imaging - philosophical debate - policy making Key Concepts neuroscience measurement theory Questions to Reflect On - What would a consciousness meter reveal about AI? - Can consciousness be quantified across species? A Different Perspective Consciousness may be inherently subjective, limiting precise measurement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) [Conscious Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious-think-3262143/) [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Consciousness Meter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness-meter-3975621/) [Meter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meter/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Philosophy of Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-of-mind/) [Think Eventually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-eventually-1381767/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Discipline yourself. Be conscious of what you think, and what you like. What gets you mad? What gets you in your feelings? Figure that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tee-grizzley/discipline-yourself-be-conscious-of-what-you-think-and-what-you-like/) [Tee Grizzley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tee-grizzley/) > [Become conscious of what you think during the day. A negative thought will enter you. At first it will be vague, innocuous, but then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/become-conscious-of-what-you-think-during-the-day-a-negative-thought/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [If you look at it long-term, I think eventually there will be a DH in the National League.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-scherzer/if-you-look-at-it-long-term-i-think-eventually-there-will-be-a-dh-in/) [Max Scherzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-scherzer/) > [What you think other think about you will eventually influence how you picture yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mrthrill/what-you-think-other-think-about-you-will-eventually-influence-how/) [Mrthrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mrthrill/) > [“If I can work enough, then one day I could rest.” Or, “One day my woman will understand something and then she will stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-deida/if-i-can-work-enough-then-one-day-i-could-rest-or-one-day-my-woman/) [David Deida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-deida/) > [If you spend all your time worrying about what others think, you will eventually forget how to think for yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/if-you-spend-all-your-time-worrying-about-what-others-think-you-will/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [If our core belief is based on what other people think, then we eventually will allow their opinions to become our reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-our-core-belief-is-based-on-what-other-people-think-then-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not going to go out there and set the world on fire and win my first race. People have to understand that. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hailie-deegan/i-m-not-going-to-go-out-there-and-set-the-world-on-fire-and-win-my/) [Hailie Deegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hailie-deegan/) > [Our subconscious minds have no sense of humor, play no jokes and cannot tell the difference between reality and an imagined thought or image.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-collier/our-subconscious-minds-have-no-sense-of-humor-play-no-jokes-and/) [Robert Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-collier/) > [I think eventually all music will be free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronan-keating/i-think-eventually-all-music-will-be-free/) [Ronan Keating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronan-keating/) > [I think eventually I want to become a teacher, like my father wanted to be, and hopefully positively influence the next generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-curry/i-think-eventually-i-want-to-become-a-teacher-like-my-father-wanted/) [Ann Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-curry/) > [The problem is not spontaneous comes directly to you because it you are the one who made on it, so think about all you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/the-problem-is-not-spontaneous-comes-directly-to-you-because-it-you/) [Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/) > [I often think that eventually I'd love to do some papers... my correspondence if life calms down a bit, but I think I'd do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-fraser/i-often-think-that-eventually-i-d-love-to-do-some-papers-my/) [Brooke Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-fraser/) > [I think eventually I'd love to get into directing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-simone/i-think-eventually-i-d-love-to-get-into-directing/) [Hannah Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-simone/) > [When people think of me, I want them to think of a travel show host who's really funny and good at his job, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/when-people-think-of-me-i-want-them-to-think-of-a-travel-show-host/) [Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/) ## More by Edward Boyden > [I spend a lot of time going over old conversation summaries. A lot of the old ones are about ideas that ended in failure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-going-over-old-conversation-summaries-a-lot-of/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Synthesize new ideas constantly. Never read passively. Annotate, model, think, and synthesize while you read, even when you're reading what you conceive to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/synthesize-new-ideas-constantly-never-read-passively-annotate-model/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [I was interested in big unknowns, and the brain is one of the biggest, so building tools that allow us to regard the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/i-was-interested-in-big-unknowns-and-the-brain-is-one-of-the-biggest/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [You can imagine over very long timescales, perhaps far beyond the multi-decade time scale, we might be able to ask very deep questions about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/you-can-imagine-over-very-long-timescales-perhaps-far-beyond-the/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [It's not even known how many kinds of cells there are in the brain. If you were looking for a periodic table of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/it-s-not-even-known-how-many-kinds-of-cells-there-are-in-the-brain-if/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Life is an adventure - Savor every instant!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/life-is-an-adventure-savor-every-instant/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [If we succeed, it makes no sense to keep it only for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/if-we-succeed-it-makes-no-sense-to-keep-it-only-for-ourselves/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Unlike optogenetics, where there are existing nonprofits that give away the DNA for free or at cost, expansion microscopy requires chemicals to be used,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/unlike-optogenetics-where-there-are-existing-nonprofits-that-give/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Behavioral economics can explain some things, but it's hard to explain a lot of the underlying processes that generate these decisions, much less some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/behavioral-economics-can-explain-some-things-but-it-s-hard-to-explain/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [The world is your playground - play with a sense of destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/the-world-is-your-playground-play-with-a-sense-of-destiny/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [It's surprising that the world is understandable to the extent that it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/it-s-surprising-that-the-world-is-understandable-to-the-extent-that/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [There are many things that we still don't understand about the universe, right? Einstein struggled to bring quantum mechanics and gravity together and never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/there-are-many-things-that-we-still-don-t-understand-about-the/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Maybe we'll understand more about how the universe came to be, and what forces drove it in the early days and which forces drive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/maybe-we-ll-understand-more-about-how-the-universe-came-to-be-and/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [One thing that I've been doing for a long time is to wake up really early. I try to get up around 4 or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/one-thing-that-i-ve-been-doing-for-a-long-time-is-to-wake-up-really/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) > [Suppose there are some things that we don't understand about the universe, but if you understand human intelligence and you understand the gaps in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-boyden/suppose-there-are-some-things-that-we-don-t-understand-about-the/) [Edward Boyden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) [Explore all 37 Edward Boyden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-boyden/) ## More Conscious quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/) > [Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability To lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/repugnant-is-a-creature-who-would-squander-the-ability-to-lift-an-eye/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [The goal of the Creator is for each entity to make a conscious choice to again seek Oneness, out of our own free will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilcock/the-goal-of-the-creator-is-for-each-entity-to-make-a-conscious-choice/) [David Wilcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilcock/) > [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [All black people who are even minimally conscious, black people who have ever experienced Europe's technological power crusading in the vanguard of a civilizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-nkosi/all-black-people-who-are-even-minimally-conscious-black-people-who/) [Lewis Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-nkosi/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) [Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We don't have a \"consciousness meter\" that'll tell us exactly how conscious something is. 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