--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A lot of evidence shows that most of our…" description: "\"A lot of evidence shows that most of our cognitive processing is unconscious - phenomenal experience is just a very small slice or partition of a much ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/thomas-metzinger-13958_cognitive_a-lot-of-evidence-shows-that-most-of-our_693347.png" --- # A lot of evidence shows that most of our cognitive… ![“A lot of evidence shows that most of our cognitive processing is unconscious - phenomenal experience is just a very small slice or partition of a much larger space in which mental processing takes place.” quote by Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/thomas-metzinger-13958_cognitive_a-lot-of-evidence-shows-that-most-of-our_693347.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/thomas-metzinger-13958_cognitive_a-lot-of-evidence-shows-that-most-of-our_693347.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/thomas-metzinger-13958_cognitive_a-lot-of-evidence-shows-that-most-of-our_693347.png) > “A lot of evidence shows that most of our cognitive processing is unconscious - phenomenal experience is just a very small slice or partition of a much larger space in which mental processing takes place.” [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Much of our mental activity occurs beneath conscious awareness, making subjective experience only a tiny fragment of the brain’s extensive processing. **In simple terms:** Most thinking is unconscious; consciousness is a small slice. Key Takeaway Recognize and explore the unseen influences on your thoughts. Themes cognition unconscious mind philosophy of mind Mood analytical curious Type scientific philosophical When to use this quote - decision making - habit formation - creative problem solving - mental health therapy Key Concepts neuroscience self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What unconscious biases might affect your choices? - How can you become more aware of hidden mental activity? A Different Perspective Unconscious processes can be hard to measure or control. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consciousness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consciousness/) [Phenomenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phenomenal/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) ## Related quotes > [One of the ultimate challenges for biology is to understand the brain's processing of unconscious and conscious perception, emotion, and empathy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kandel/one-of-the-ultimate-challenges-for-biology-is-to-understand-the-brain/) [Eric Kandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kandel/) > [I spent 20 years doing research on regular and irregular verbs, not because I'm an obsessive language lover but because it seemed to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/i-spent-20-years-doing-research-on-regular-and-irregular-verbs-not/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [I think that genius comes not just from having great mental processing power. 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Not in September when the riots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aanchal-malhotra/we-should-have-realized-it-sooner-at-least-my-father-should-have-that/) [Aanchal Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aanchal-malhotra/) > [“Memorialization is not a passive practice but an active conversation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aanchal-malhotra/memorialization-is-not-a-passive-practice-but-an-active-conversation/) [Aanchal Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aanchal-malhotra/) ## More by Thomas Metzinger > [For a human being, to possess a consciously experienced first-person perspective means to have acquired a very specific functional profile and distinctive level of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/for-a-human-being-to-possess-a-consciously-experienced-first-person/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [At 19, I basically held the position that if you were intellectually honest and really wanted to get in touch with political reality then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/at-19-i-basically-held-the-position-that-if-you-were-intellectually/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [I think that there is an ongoing conspiracy in the philosophical community, an organized form of self-deception, as in a cult, to simply all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/i-think-that-there-is-an-ongoing-conspiracy-in-the-philosophical/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [You cannot be a rational subject without veto-control on the level of mental action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/you-cannot-be-a-rational-subject-without-veto-control-on-the-level-of/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [Someone who cannot stop his outer flow of words will soon be unable to communicate with other human beings at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/someone-who-cannot-stop-his-outer-flow-of-words-will-soon-be-unable/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [I believe that if we would carefully apply the distinction between transparency and opacity to the different layers of the human self-model, looking at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/i-believe-that-if-we-would-carefully-apply-the-distinction-between/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [As far as inner action is concerned, we are only rarely truly self-determined persons, for the major part of our conscious mental activity rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/as-far-as-inner-action-is-concerned-we-are-only-rarely-truly-self/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [Subjectivity means to catch yourself in the act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/subjectivity-means-to-catch-yourself-in-the-act/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [Subjectivity is an ability, the capacity to use a new inner mode of presenting the fact that you currently know something to yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/subjectivity-is-an-ability-the-capacity-to-use-a-new-inner-mode-of/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [One of the interesting characteristics of the Ego Tunnel is that it creates (as Finnish philosopher Antti Revonsuo called it) a robust "out-of-the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/one-of-the-interesting-characteristics-of-the-ego-tunnel-is-that-it/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [As a first-order approximation, I would say that phenomenality is "availability for introspective attention": Consciousness is a property of all those mental contents to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/as-a-first-order-approximation-i-would-say-that-phenomenality-is/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [I could never understand how someone would embark on their life without having first confronted and clarified the truly fundamental questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-metzinger/i-could-never-understand-how-someone-would-embark-on-their-life/) [Thomas Metzinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-metzinger/) > [“First, we developed the self-model, because we had to integrate our sensory perceptions with our bodily behavior. 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