Tag Archives: Neuroscience

Steven Pinker: From neurons to consciousness

Posted on April 15, 2017 by

This lecture from Steven Pinker has been around for a while, but it seems to get at a question a few people have asked me recently: how does the information processing of neurons and synapses lead to conscious perception?  Pinker doesn’t answer this … Continue reading →

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Is consciousness only in the back of the brain?

Posted on April 6, 2017 by

There’s an interesting debate going on among some neuroscientists about which parts of the brain are involved in subjective experience.  On the one side are Christof Koch, Giuilio Tononi, and colleagues who argue that consciousness exists wholly in the back of … Continue reading →

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Two brain science podcasts worth checking out

Posted on January 17, 2017 by

As my long time readers will know, I’m very interested in the mind, and my preferred way to explore it is through science, notably neuroscience or cognitive psychology, or with science oriented philosophy.  With that in mind, I want to … Continue reading →

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The illusion of phenomenal consciousness?

Posted on December 12, 2016 by

Philosopher Peter Hankins at Conscious Entities has a write-up on the November 12 issue of the JCS (Journal of Consciousness Studies) in which philosophers, psychologists, and neuroscientists such as Keith Frankish, Daniel Dennett, Susan Blackmore, and Michael Graziano, debate whether it makes … Continue reading →

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Daniel Wolpert: The real reason for brains

Posted on December 10, 2016 by

I came across this old TED talk today and decided to share it because it’s relevant to the previous post on consciousness and simulations.  Daniel Wolpert’s talk doesn’t address consciousness specifically, only the overall role of the simulations, but it’s … Continue reading →

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Is consciousness a simulation engine, a prediction machine?

Posted on December 4, 2016 by

Back in September (which now seems like a million years ago), I did a series of posts on consciousness inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt’s recent book, ‘The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience‘.  In that series, … Continue reading →

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The range of conscious systems and the hard problem

Posted on September 21, 2016 by

This is the fifth and final post in a series inspired by Todd Feinberg and Jon Mallatt’s new book, ‘The Ancient Origins of Consciousness: How the Brain Created Experience‘.  The previous posts were: What counts as consciousness? Predators and the … Continue reading →

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