Then I Am Myself The World - Christof Koch, Neuroscientist, DS Pod #276

Christof Koch is a neuroscientist who studies consciousness, and
is best known for integrated information theory. IIT is a
consciousness-first theory, which states that the experience of
being someone (or something) is directly related to the causal
powers of the underlying system. Up until relatively recently,
Koch was something of a materialist - he believed that it would
be possible to find the specific series of neural events in the
brain that produce lived experience. A series of events, which he
details in his new book "The I Am Myself the World" have led him
to embrace more of an idealist perspective, which says that we
are instantiations of a a much larger universal consciousness
that permeates the universe. We talk to him about his
transformation, the nature of consciousness and will, what it
"causal powers" of a system have to do with consciousness, and
the value of mystical experiences. Sign up for our Patreon and
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https://amzn.to/3Mleyrw (00:00) Go! (00:03:40) Consciousness and
Clinical Practice (00:08:32) Practical Challenges and
Developments (00:14:13) Ethical and Theoretical Considerations
(00:17:43) Theories and Predictions in Neuroscience (00:21:08)
Physics, Causality, and Consciousness (00:24:12) The Role of
Physical Interpretation in Science and Technology (00:27:24)
Exploration of Physical Theories in Science (00:29:03) The
Intersection of Consciousness and Data Interpretation (00:33:35)
Significance of Studying Consciousness (00:37:30) Understanding
Consciousness through Neural Correlates (00:48:16) Evolutionary
Complexity and Consciousness (00:54:04) Human Evolution and
Desires (00:57:01) Idealism and Consciousness (01:02:23) Mystical
Experiences and Consciousness (01:12:15) Near-Death Experiences
and Psychedelics (01:14:29) Exploring 5-MeO-DMT Experiences
(01:16:34) Idealism and Scientific Study (01:18:29) Universal
Mind and Consciousness (01:21:30) Complexity and Consciousness
(01:24:00) Split Brain and Consciousness Studies (01:27:53)
Evolution and Self-Consciousness (01:31:48) Complexity of
Consciousness Emergence (01:35:23) Integrated Information Theory
and Consciousness (01:39:33) Impact of Substances on
Microorganisms and Consciousness (01:44:26) Artificial
Intelligence and the Possibility of Consciousness (01:51:05)
Simulation vs. Reality in Causal Power (01:56:01) Importance of
Hardware in Consciousness (02:01:15) Virtual Worlds and Reality
(02:02:08) Consciousness and Computational Limitations (02:03:05)
Scientific Rivalries and Theory Validation (02:06:05) The
Intersection of Science and Philosophy (02:09:22) Science,
Paradigms, and Metaphysical Assumptions (02:11:28) Science
Evolution and Competing Theories (02:15:00) The Computational
Universe and AI Perspectives (02:21:24) Metaphysical Reflections
(02:23:47) Mystical Experience on the Beach (02:27:07) Nature's
Influence (02:32:36) Flow States in Nature and Music (02:36:06)
Limits of Scientific Understanding (02:41:00) Behind the Scenes
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