I wonder if someone has come up with an algorithm or some other kind of mathematical structure which, if run (on a computer with infinite memory and unlimited amount of time), or if it just existed physically, would produce conscious being like us or other interesting and kinda similar self-organizing structures.
@p
Unlimited computational power is the problem. There are hard physical limits to what can be done with the computer architecture we use currently. But on the other hand there is no reason why what is done with biological brains cannot be done better with other materials in principle. There is nothing magical or supernatural about brains.
If we managed to scan a whole animal brain, down to the details of the cells, understood enough about them to know what are the relevant mechanism at play, and coded them all into a computer, it is likely that it would be conscious. But again, this is incredibly difficult and very far from possible with the computers we have today.
@p I’m not sure that there even is a useful definition of self consciousness or intelligence, so I would assume the answer is both yes and no