Nagel: What is it like to be a bat?. A great classic in the philosophy of consciousness (1974).
Chalmers: The singularity: a philosophical analysis. Long paper with nontrivial philosophy by a hard-core philosopher.
Sloman: An alternative to working on machine consciousness. Interesting philosophical ideas by an AI researcher.
Baars: The global workspace model. Paper in 2002 and Paper in 2004 (two papers together because they are short and on the same topic). A well-known theory of the functional role of consciousness.
Dehaene et al: The Global Neuronal Workspace Model of Conscious Access. Another computational neuroscience theory of consciousness.
Hesslow: Conscious thought as simulation. A review on the idea that consciousness is simulation
Itti and Koch: Computational modelling of visual attention. A computational neuroscience model of attention. Attention is certainly closely related to consciousness, which is why we would be interested in this paper as well.
Chella and Mazotti: Artificial Consciousness. A rather long review including a computational theory of what artificial consciousness might mean.
Ananthanarayanan et al: The Cat is Out of the Bag: Cortical Simulations with 109 Neurons, 1013 Synapses. Huge computer simulation which is supposed to create a brain?
Markram: The Blue Brain Project, with additional material. A highly mediatised supercomputer simulation.
Ehrsson et al: Threatening a rubber hand that you feel is yours elicits a cortical anxiety response. Ramachandran et al: The phantom head. A rubber hand can be considered as your own by some funny tricks. The same thing as for the head. (Two short papers so they are combined.)
Tononi & Koch: The Neural Correlates of Consciousness: An Update Review in 2008 on the connection between the brain and consciousness.
Schurger et al: Reproducibility Distinguishes Conscious from Nonconscious Neural Representations Brain imaging (fMRI) experiments on how to distinguish if something is conscious or not. Vanhadenuyse et al: Default network connectivity reflects the level of consciousness in non-communicative brain damaged patients. How one can distinguish between conscious and unconscious comatose patients using brain imaging (fMRI) (Two short papers combined to a single presentation.)
Railo et al: Tracking the processes behind conscious perception: A review of event-related potential correlates of visual consciousness. A review of brain imaging (EEG/MEG) results related to consciousness
Wyart et al: Neural Dissociation between Visual Awareness and Spatial Attention. An MEG study of the difference between consciousness and attention in visual processing
Marti et al: A shared cortical bottleneck underlying Attentional Blink and Psychological Refractory Period. Brain imaging experiments (MEG) related to attention and consciousness
Fountas et el: A neuronal global workspace for human-like control of a computer game character. Application of consciousness modelling to computer game design.
Possible additions if necessary/desired: default-mode network, stimulus-independent thought, more about singularity
(Version of 13th Jan 2012)