A Guide To The Fundamental Mystery Of The Mind - Erik Hoel

Erik Hoel is a research professor at Tufts University, theoretical neuroscientist, and an author known for his work on understanding consciousness and the complexity of the brain. Consciousness and free will are two of the most puzzling aspects of human existence. The question now is whether emerging scientific discoveries and technological advancements can unravel what's going on under the hood of our experience. Expect to learn what the newest cutting-edge research on consciousness can teach us, the impact AI will have on our understanding of the Self, why it is so difficult to explain our inner thoughts out loud, whether science can prove that we have free will, how to overcome your deterministic fatalism and much more... Sponsors: Get an exclusive discount from Surfshark VPN at https://surfshark.deals/MODERNWISDOM (use code MODERNWISDOM) Get 15% discount on Mud/Wtr at http://mudwtr.com/mw (use code MODERNWISDOM) Get 20% discount on House Of Macadamias’ nuts at https://houseofmacadamias.com/modernwisdom (use code MW20) Extra Stuff: Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom #freewill #mind #consciousness - 00:00 The Current State of Consciousness Research 05:17 Bureaucracy in Academia 08:38 Is Studying Consciousness Too Difficult? 12:54 The Limitations of Neuroscience 19:32 Intrinsic & Extrinsic Perspectives 26:36 Why Descartes is Important in Studies of Consciousness 32:05 Explaining the Bicameral Mind 39:00 What Would Happen if a Good Theory of Consciousness was Found? 43:22 Do We Really Have Free Will? 57:31 Where to Find Erik - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Chris WilliamsonhostErik Hoelguest

Aug 5, 202358mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: August 5, 2023
Duration: 58m
Channel: Modern Wisdom
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Erik Hoel is a research professor at Tufts University, theoretical neuroscientist, and an author known for his work on understanding consciousness and the complexity of the brain. Consciousness and free will are two of the most puzzling aspects of human existence. The question now is whether emerging scientific discoveries and technological advancements can unravel what's going on under the hood of our experience. Expect to learn what the newest cutting-edge research on consciousness can teach us, the impact AI will have on our understanding of the Self, why it is so difficult to explain our inner thoughts out loud, whether science can prove that we have free will, how to overcome your deterministic fatalism and much more... Sponsors: Get an exclusive discount from Surfshark VPN at https://surfshark.deals/MODERNWISDOM (use code MODERNWISDOM) Get 15% discount on Mud/Wtr at http://mudwtr.com/mw (use code MODERNWISDOM) Get 20% discount on House Of Macadamias’ nuts at https://houseofmacadamias.com/modernwisdom (use code MW20) Extra Stuff: Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom #freewill #mind #consciousness - 00:00 The Current State of Consciousness Research 05:17 Bureaucracy in Academia 08:38 Is Studying Consciousness Too Difficult? 12:54 The Limitations of Neuroscience 19:32 Intrinsic & Extrinsic Perspectives 26:36 Why Descartes is Important in Studies of Consciousness 32:05 Explaining the Bicameral Mind 39:00 What Would Happen if a Good Theory of Consciousness was Found? 43:22 Do We Really Have Free Will? 57:31 Where to Find Erik - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

SPEAKERS

Chris Williamson
host
Erik Hoel
guest
Narrator
other

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Modern Wisdom, featuring Chris Williamson and Erik Hoel, A Guide To The Fundamental Mystery Of The Mind - Erik Hoel explores erik Hoel on consciousness, neuroscience’s failures, and free will’s future Erik Hoel argues that mainstream neuroscience has largely failed to explain consciousness because it inherited a behaviorist, Galilean taboo against subjective experience and still mostly avoids its “main function”: the stream of consciousness. He contrasts extrinsic, quantitative descriptions (the domain of science) with intrinsic, qualitative experience (the domain of literature), claiming our civilization has separately refined both and now struggles to reconcile them. Hoel situates current consciousness science as pre‑paradigmatic, akin to biology before Darwin, awaiting a unifying theory that would explain how brain activity gives rise to experience. He also introduces his work on causal emergence, contending that higher-level entities (like persons) can have genuine causal power, challenging simplistic arguments against free will and suggesting that a future theory of consciousness could transform both self-understanding and AI.

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