<s>
The	B-Application
user	I-Application
illusion	I-Application
is	O
the	O
illusion	O
created	O
for	O
the	O
user	O
by	O
a	O
human	O
–	O
computer	O
interface	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
the	O
visual	B-Application
metaphor	I-Application
of	I-Application
a	I-Application
desktop	I-Application
used	O
in	O
many	O
graphical	B-Application
user	I-Application
interfaces	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
philosophers	O
of	O
mind	O
have	O
argued	O
that	O
consciousness	O
is	O
a	O
form	O
of	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
which	O
argues	O
that	O
conscious	O
experience	O
does	O
not	O
expose	O
objective	O
reality	O
,	O
instead	O
it	O
provides	O
a	O
simplified	O
version	O
of	O
reality	O
that	O
allows	O
the	O
user	O
,	O
humans	O
,	O
to	O
make	O
decisions	O
and	O
act	O
in	O
their	O
environment	O
,	O
akin	O
to	O
a	O
computer	O
desktop	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
notion	O
is	O
explored	O
by	O
Tor	O
Nørretranders	O
in	O
his	O
1991	O
Danish	O
book	O
Mærk	O
verden	O
,	O
issued	O
in	O
a	O
1998	O
English	O
edition	O
as	O
The	B-Application
User	I-Application
Illusion	I-Application
:	O
Cutting	O
Consciousness	O
Down	O
to	O
Size	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
pioneer	O
of	O
the	O
concept	O
of	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
,	O
Alan	O
Kay	O
,	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
most	O
important	O
feature	O
of	O
a	O
desktop	O
computer	O
is	O
the	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
believed	O
that	O
the	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
is	O
merely	O
a	O
tool	O
to	O
create	O
the	O
simplified	O
representation	O
of	O
the	O
underlying	O
complexity	O
of	O
the	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
“	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
”	O
that	O
demonstrates	O
the	O
computer	O
as	O
much	O
simpler	O
than	O
it	O
truly	O
is	O
,	O
not	O
only	O
allows	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
act	O
and	O
make	O
decisions	O
when	O
using	O
the	O
computer	O
,	O
but	O
,	O
in	O
all	O
purposes	O
,	O
is	O
the	O
computer	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Benjamin	O
Libet	O
conducted	O
an	O
experiment	O
that	O
supports	O
the	O
consciousness	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
philosophers	O
of	O
mind	O
have	O
argued	O
that	O
consciousness	O
is	O
a	O
form	O
of	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
notion	O
is	O
explored	O
by	O
Tor	O
Nørretranders	O
in	O
his	O
1991	O
book	O
The	B-Application
User	I-Application
Illusion	I-Application
:	O
Cutting	O
Consciousness	O
Down	O
to	O
Size	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Daniel	O
Dennett	O
suggests	O
that	O
although	O
a	O
human	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
understand	O
everything	O
that	O
's	O
going	O
on	O
in	O
the	O
cell	O
phone	O
system	O
,	O
we	O
can	O
still	O
use	O
our	O
phones	O
smoothly	O
by	O
simple	O
touches	O
and	O
nudges	O
Therefore	O
,	O
the	B-Application
user	I-Application
illusion	I-Application
simplifies	O
life	O
such	O
that	O
we	O
are	O
able	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
the	O
interface	O
with	O
only	O
a	O
few	O
simplified	O
steps	O
,	O
without	O
knowing	O
the	O
underlying	O
working	O
principles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dennett	O
claims	O
that	O
we	O
benefit	O
from	O
this	O
phenomena	O
,	O
since	O
"	O
It	O
's	O
the	O
brain	O
's	O
'	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
 '	O
of	O
itself	O
…	O
The	O
brain	O
does	O
n't	O
have	O
to	O
understand	O
how	O
the	O
brain	O
works	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dennett	O
says	O
,	O
"	O
Your	O
consciousness	O
is	O
my	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
of	O
you	O
and	O
my	O
consciousness	O
is	O
your	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
of	O
me.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
,	O
we	O
are	O
manipulating	O
our	O
own	O
brains	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
User	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
may	O
have	O
originated	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
selective	O
pressures	O
of	O
Darwinism	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Much	O
like	O
the	O
computer	O
desktop	O
,	O
our	O
perception	O
of	O
reality	O
is	O
merely	O
a	O
tuned	O
simplification	O
that	O
guides	O
adaptive	O
behavior	O
,	O
a	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Critics	O
of	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
argue	O
that	O
humans	O
are	O
able	O
to	O
access	O
the	O
content	O
of	O
their	O
brain	O
’s	O
representations	O
by	O
introspection	B-Application
and	O
analysis	O
of	O
inner	O
speech	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
critics	O
argue	O
that	O
inner	O
speech	O
episodes	O
permit	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
content	O
of	O
some	O
of	O
our	O
brain	O
states	O
,	O
which	O
thereby	O
allows	O
us	O
to	O
know	O
what	O
our	O
brain	O
states	O
represent	O
by	O
introspection	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
user	I-Application
illusion	I-Application
proposes	O
that	O
consciousness	O
is	O
an	O
evolutionary	O
tool	O
utilized	O
to	O
enhance	O
social	O
behavior	O
and	O
cooperation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
consciousness	O
is	O
just	O
the	O
data	O
in	O
the	O
human	O
mind	O
creating	O
a	O
user	B-Application
illusion	I-Application
then	O
this	O
supports	O
the	O
theory	O
that	O
free	O
will	O
may	O
not	O
exist	O
.	O
</s>
