Is it possible for the constituent parts of a conscious being to be conscious themselves? Can I infer from the fact that I am conscious that the cells which make up my body are not conscious?

There are some strong arguments that if a computer appears to possess intelligence similar to a human's, that we must assume it too has self-awareness. Additionally, one could make a strong case that lesser animals have self-awareness, because they have the same type of brain as humans (just in a less sophisticated form.) My question is this: if we assume that a) computers of seemingly human intelligence are self-aware, and b) that animals of lesser brains are self-aware, must we logically conclude that computers of lesser "intelligence" are also self-aware? In other words, are all computers self aware? Is my toaster self-aware?

Are animals self aware?

I was reading Stanford Encyclopedia's article on consciousness and the problem of "what it is like" to be a bat. I believe that there is something that it is like to be a bat, but I guess there is nothing that it is like to be a bacterium, an amoeba or even a worm or a flea. What do you think an organism has to have so that there is something that it is like to be it? Where's the divide between fleas and bats?

Is consciousness a byproduct or “add-on” of our evolution or is it something that is intrinsic and inseparable from the skills we humans have? I know this question sounds strange but it's something that has bugged me for quite some time.

How far down into philosophy does the mysterian attitude penetrate? I realize it's nothing new, since Christian and other religious philosophers have thrown in the towel when it comes to describing Deity. The problem of consciousness is now producing the same helplessness. When is a problem decreed beyond human competence and when is it just beyond your and my current competence? Is continued frustration the deciding factor?

Does the individual consciousness depend on the actual atoms or only on the configuration of the atoms? Suppose we have mastered cryo-freezing and atom-manipulation technology. We can freeze and unfreeze people at will. We freeze Sarah. We replace Sarah's atoms one by one. With all atoms replaced, we wake her up. Is it the "same" Sarah? (the same to herself, not just to us). Thanks, Mario

How come pain is in the hand, an arm distance away, but the pain processing is in the brain? I don't feel my hand in the brain, I feel it at 40cms away from my eyes, on the keyboard.

When I go and get really very drunk, I sometimes forget what happened the following morning. Was I conscious during the periods that are blacked out, or do I forget them because I wasn't conscious? Similarly, when I dream and forget it the next morning, am I conscious? I guess most people would answer No, but it doesn't seem so obvious to me. What's the deal with consciousness? Are clever scientists researching it or do people think it's not understandable? Any chance you know how I can read some research or learn some more about it (without doing a psychology degree)?

Is there any way for consciousness to be measured? What does it mean to say that my consciousness is at a higher level than that of my dog, or that my dog is at a higher level of consciousness than a flea, or that the flea is at a higher level of consciousness than a rosebush? What are we measuring?