logo
episode-header-image
Jul 2024
42m 7s

#374 — Consciousness and the Physical Wo...

SAM HARRIS
About this episode

Sam Harris speaks with Christof Koch about the nature of consciousness. They discuss Christof's development as a neuroscientist, his collaboration with Francis Crick, change blindness and binocular rivalry, sleep and anesthesia, the limits of physicalism, non-locality, brains as classical systems, conscious AI, idealism and panpsychism, Integrated Information Theory (IIT), what it means to say something "exists," the illusion of the self, brain bridging, Christof's experience with psychedelics, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.


Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That's why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life's most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

Up next
Nov 17
#444 — America's Zombie Democracy
<p>Sam Harris speaks with George Packer about American democracy and authoritarianism. They discuss Packer's article "<a href= "https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/09/america-authoritarian-regime-ai-suicide/684350/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America's Zombie Democ ... Show More
20m 54s
Nov 10
#443 — What Is Christian Nationalism?
Sam Harris speaks with Douglas Wilson about his book Frequently Shouted Questions about Christian Nationalism. They discuss Wilson's debates with Christopher Hitchens, the landscape of American evangelicalism, young-earth creationism, pre- vs. post-millennialism, the concept of d ... Show More
1h 59m
Nov 3
#442 — More From Sam: Public Speaking, Nuclear War, & Christian Nationalism
In this latest episode of the More From Sam series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss how Sam overcame his fear of public speaking, the ongoing threat of nuclear war and the new Netflix movie A Hou ... Show More
17m 49s
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2024
E104 - Annaka Harris: Reality Is Stranger Than You Think, Consciousness, Perception, Free Will, AI & Love
<p>Annaka Harris dives deep into some of the most profound and perplexing questions about the nature of consciousness, perception, free will, AI, and the underlying meaning of love and existence.</p> <p>Annaka begins by defining consciousness and exploring the &quot;hard problem& ... Show More
2h 24m
Aug 2024
Sam Harris Blows Your MIND on Life After Death, Consciousness, and the Mystery of Existence| Sam Harris EP 694
<p>Have you listened to the <a href="https://lewishowes.com/podcast/mindfulness-vs-happiness-with-sam-harris/">FULL EPISODE yet?</a></p><p>"The good thing about this universe is consciousness. Your life is your consciousness in each moment." - Sam Harris</p><p>In this mind-bendin ... Show More
7m 56s
Oct 3
Are Transcendental Experiences Proof of God? Dr. James B. Glattfelder on Consciousness, Spiritually & The Amazing Intelligence of the Universe
Are Aliens Just an Extension of Our Consciousness? Are psychedelics the only way to tap into a higher state of consciousness? Dr. James B. Glattfelder on the Transcendental Multiverse, Psychedelics, and the Fight for Meaning What if communicating with aliens isn’t “out there”, bu ... Show More
1h 43m
Sep 15
How to Expand Your Consciousness | Dr. Christof Koch
My guest is Dr. Christof Koch, PhD, a pioneering researcher on the topic of consciousness, an investigator at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and the chief scientist at the Tiny Blue Dot Foundation. We discuss the neuroscience of consciousness—how it arises in our brain, ho ... Show More
2h 11m
Sep 2
A landscape of consciousness | Robert Lawrence Kuhn and Hilary Lawson
Will we ever reach a conclusive, agreed-upon theory of consciousness?Over the millennia of recorded history, countless stories, theories, and arguments have emerged to explain the origins of consciousness. And yet, here we are in 2025 - post-Plato, post-Descartes, post-scientific ... Show More
41m 19s
Jul 2020
Episode 82, 'The Nature of Consciousness' with Susan Blackmore (Part II - Further Analysis and Discussion)
<p class="">The smell of coffee, the taste of asparagus, the warmth of a hug, and the agony of death: conscious experience makes up the fabric of our world, yet many consider it to be the most intractable mystery in philosophy and science. <em>What is it like</em> to undergo expe ... Show More
41m 34s
Nov 2021
Episode 101, Talking about the Mind (Part I - The Fabric of Reality)
<p><strong>Introduction</strong></p> <p>Imagine the smile on your parent's face as you rush to meet them at the school gates, the soft heat of the sand between your toes on a first holiday, waking up in the haze of a late afternoon after dancing all night, the drop in your stomac ... Show More
55 m
Oct 2023
Dan Dennett Looks Back on His Career
<p>Get tickets for our event: <a href= "https://www.skeptic.com/event" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">skeptic.com/event</a></p> <p>Daniel Dennett, preeminent philosopher and cognitive scientist, has spent his career considering the thorniest, most fundamental mysteries of the mi ... Show More
1h 28m