If consciousness is not fully understood, what implications does this have for questions of ethics, personhood, and the potential consciousness of non-human entities?

The ongoing scientific and philosophical debate around consciousness has significant ethical ramifications. If consciousness isn't exclusive to human brains (as suggested by theories like IIT or panpsychism), how should we re-evaluate our treatment of animals, or even future advanced AI systems? Defining 'personhood' traditionally hinges on consciousness, but without a clear scientific definition, our ethical boundaries remain fluid. This insight encourages a broader, more inclusive ethical framework, pushing us to consider the possibility of suffering and experience in forms of life or intelligence that we might currently dismiss as mere mechanisms.