If you think about it (pun) we have little clue how the higher functions of the brain come about (assuming consciousness is a higher function), how they might b

If you think about it (pun) we have little clue how the higher functions of the brain come about (assuming consciousness is a higher function), how they might be connected, what is innate and what grows only after cultural seeding. The problem is not necessarily intractable. Despite the pretense of omnipotent scientific capabilities (which is now in obscene display with the AI craze) in fact our mental models for explaining things have not advanced very much after the 19th century. Explaining the brain captivates our brains and we attribute special, even metaphysical signifance to it, but the fact is we havent explained any complex system. In other words, how would you even explain "consciousness". In words? In mathematical equations? As a reproducible experiment? As inexplicable "behavior" in some cellular automaton?