Annaka Harris: Free Will, Consciousness, and the Nature of Reality | Lex Fridman Podcast #326

ℹ️ EPISODE INFO

Released

October 5, 2022

Duration

2h 39m

Channel

Lex Fridman Podcast

Watch on YouTube

▶ Open ↗

📝 EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Annaka Harris is the author of Conscious: A Brief Guide to the Fundamental Mystery of the Mind. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:

• Wealthfront: https://wealthfront.com/lex to get $50 sign-up bonus
• BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off
• Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex to get 25% off premium
• Onnit: https://lexfridman.com/onnit to get up to 10% off
• Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit

EPISODE LINKS: Annaka's Twitter: http://twitter.com/annakaharris Annaka's Website: http://annakaharris.com Annaka's Facebook: http://facebook.com/annakaharrisprojects Annaka's Books:

1. Conscious: https://amzn.to/3SFLLPE
2. I Wonder: https://amzn.to/3UPQTTm

Annaka's Articles:

1. What Is Time?: http://nautil.us/what-is-time-238478
2. A Solution to the Combination Problem: http://annakaharris.com/the-future-of-panpsychism
3. Consciousness Isn’t Self-Centered: http://nautil.us/consciousness-isnt-self_centered-237720

Books:

1. The Case Against Reality: https://amzn.to/3MhW4Wt
2. Being You: https://amzn.to/3RsxdBQ
3. Livewired: https://amzn.to/3Cn9BKS
4. Spooky Action at a Distance: https://amzn.to/3y27N7a
5. The Order of Time: https://amzn.to/3Stqn0u

PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ Full episodes playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4 Clips playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOeciFP3CBCIEElOJeitOr41 OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 0:53 - Free will 54:10 - Consciousness 1:24:42 - Depression 1:37:59 - Psychedelics 1:45:58 - Meditation 1:50:22 - Ideas 2:14:08 - AI sentience 2:31:30 - Suffering 2:34:26 - Meaning of life SOCIAL:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman
• Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman
• Reddit: https://reddit.com/r/lexfridman
• Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman

🎤 SPEAKERS

• Annaka Harris

  guest

• Lex Fridman

  host

• Narrator

  other

🧾 EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Lex Fridman Podcast, featuring Annaka Harris and Lex Fridman, Annaka Harris: Free Will, Consciousness, and the Nature of Reality | Lex Fridman Podcast #326 explores annaka Harris Dissects Free Will, Consciousness, and Reality’s Deep Illusions Annaka Harris joins Lex Fridman to argue that what we usually call "free will"—the sense that a separate, conscious self initiates decisions—is largely an illusion constructed after unconscious brain processes. She distinguishes between a real but fully physical decision-making process in the brain and the misleading feeling of a conscious will that stands outside causality. From there, they explore how breaking intuitions drives scientific progress in consciousness and physics, including panpsychism and the possibility that consciousness is fundamental to reality. The conversation also covers meditation, psychedelics, mental health, and how seeing through the illusion of self might reduce suffering and deepen meaning.

🔗 RELATED EPISODES

Keoki Jackson: Lockheed Martin | Lex Fridman Podcast #33

Elon Musk: Neuralink, AI, Autopilot, and the Pale Blue Dot | Lex Fridman Podcast #49

Grant Sanderson: 3Blue1Brown and the Beauty of Mathematics | Lex Fridman Podcast #64

Rohit Prasad: Amazon Alexa and Conversational AI | Lex Fridman Podcast #57

Gary Marcus: Toward a Hybrid of Deep Learning and Symbolic AI | Lex Fridman Podcast #43

Christof Koch: Consciousness | Lex Fridman Podcast #2