logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2022
52m 6s

Did consciousness evolve? | Donald Hoffm...

Iai
About this episode

How did consciousness come into existence?

Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimes

'Steven Pinker and Sam Harris have argued "the emergence of consciousness is simply incomprehensible". While recent neuroscientists have concluded "there is no convincing function to be found for consciousness". But if so, why are we conscious? Is consciousness an accurate description of what's happening to us, a sort of internal dashboard of the current state of affairs? Or is it a construction made to achieve certain outcomes?

Has evolution got something seriously wrong if consciousness is a mere by-product of being human? Do we need a new account of consciousness and how it fits into our model of the universe? Is it possible that consciousness itself is leading us astray?

Famed cognitive psychologist Donald Hoffman, celebrated psychiatrist and former literary scholar Iain McGilchrist, trailblazing evolutionary theorist and geneticist Eva Jablonka and pioneering philosopher of consciousness Michelle Montague lock horns over whether consciousness evolved. Robert Lawrence Kuhn hosts. 

There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=the-dawn-of-consciousness

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Jul 8
The limits of logic: Should we embrace the irrational? |Iain McGilchrist, Beatrix Campbell, Simon Blackburn
Our culture prizes logic and rationality, if not above all else, as two of the most fundamental social traits. But are we missing out by overlooking the irrational? Can logic explain everything, or what is it missing? And is it possible to live (and enjoy) a life led by logic?Log ... Show More
43m 28s
Jul 2
Consciousness Begins in the Body | Antonio Damasio
We tend to believe consciousness is purely mental. And since Descartes' "I think therefore I am", we've privileged the mind as the centrepiece of thought and consciousness. But such a view is mistaken argues award-winning neuroscientist Antonio Damasio.Feelings, long dismissed as ... Show More
30m 56s
Jun 27
The Selfish and The Selfless SPECIAL | JD Vance, Pope Francis, and the 10 Commandments
What can JD Vance's arguments with Pope Francis teach us about selfishness, altruism, and the morality of the modern world?Join the team at the IAI for four articles about egoism, self-sacrifice, and everything in between, analysing a range of subjects, including: Friedrich Nietz ... Show More
45m 9s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2023
What is consciousness?
It's pretty obvious to each of us that we are conscious, as we go about our days and feel the experience of just ‘being ourselves'. But how do we know that someone else is conscious? It’s something we lose during dreamless sleep, under anaesthesia or in a coma. But what exactly i ... Show More
36m 42s
Mar 2017
The Economist asks: What is consciousness?
Where does human consciousness arise from? Was there an evolutionary moment when the light switched on? Are animals conscious, too? We ask the philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. 
16m 23s
Jun 2022
A Mystery That Matters | Anil Seth
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. --- How, on this planet, did we go from molten lava and shifting tectonic plates to sentient beings? How are you awake and aware right now? Who and where and wha ... Show More
1h 16m
May 2018
Is There Proof of a Spiritual Universe?
In 2008, after falling into a deep coma, academic neurosurgeon Eben Alexander had a near-death experience that defied his understanding of how the brain works. For him, it was proof of heaven, which became the name of his New York Times–bestselling memoir. Since then, he’s been e ... Show More
33m 48s
Apr 2023
#113 — Consciousness and the Self
Sam Harris speaks with Anil Seth about the scientific study of consciousness, where consciousness emerges in nature, levels of consciousness, perception as a “controlled hallucination,” emotion, the experience of “pure consciousness,” consciousness as “integrated information,” me ... Show More
1h 44m
Dec 2022
Making Sense of Consciousness | Episode 2 of The Essential Sam Harris
Filmmaker Jay Shapiro has produced a new series of audio documentaries, exploring the major topics that Sam has focused on over the course of his career. Each episode weaves together original analysis, critical perspective, and novel thought experiments with some of the most comp ... Show More
34m 59s
Apr 2022
The Unconscious
What do Freudian slips, Josie and the Pussycats, and solving math problems have in common? Psychoanalysis claims to have some answers! Sigmund Freud suggests that unconscious desires, fears, and trauma influence us without us being conscious of them. In pop culture, the unconscio ... Show More
56m 51s
Dec 2022
What It Means to Be a Conscious Being with Randy Veitenheimer
Visit Gaia.com/eventsplus for more information.  If being conscious is the thing that defines our existence as human beings, then it’s important to understand what consciousness is and how this brain activity works? Randy Veitenheimer explores what consciousness means, from our o ... Show More
25m 49s
Jun 2020
Do animals have consciousness?
What exactly it means to be conscious has long been a question of profound debate amongst philosophers, and more recently, scientists. There are no easy answers, and it gets even trickier when you start asking whether animals are conscious: how can you find out about their subjec ... Show More
36m 43s
Jul 2023
"What is consciousness?"
How do your billions of tiny brain cells build consciousness as they chatter away with electrical spikes and chemical signals? And why is your laptop, with its sophisticated algorithms and billions of parts, presumably not conscious? Could other large systems like a city become c ... Show More
41m 5s