sentience

Sentience is another word for consciousness, or the ability to be aware of oneself. For example, you know that you are a human. You know that you are separate from the world around you. When you think a thought or feel an emotion, you know that it only applies to you. You understand that the rest of the world does not change as your mind changes. You are aware that no one else feels or thinks the things you do. You are also aware that your thoughts and feelings come from inside you; they're not placed in your mind from an external source. You have a memory of your thought processes - you know that you didn't always think or feel the way you think or feel right now. And you know that you probably won't think or feel tomorrow the way you do right now. This self-awareness is one of the foundations of human intelligence. Without it, humans would be nonthinking brutes, unable to plan, or remember, or relate to other people.

- The Science of Battlestar Galactica by Di Justo and Grazier, page 32