The One Question That No Scientist Can Answer - Annaka Harris

Annaka Harris is an author, editor, and speaker focused on neuroscience and consciousness. What does it mean to be conscious? What is consciousness? These questions have puzzled humanity for millennia. Despite our greatest scientific breakthroughs and philosophical efforts, are we any closer to understanding the origins and true nature of consciousness? Expect to learn the most unsettling idea about consciousness that keeps Annaka up at night, if consciousness is behind our eyes, if love is a 3 dimensional construct, if consciousness is just a malfunction of the brain, rather than an essential feature, if AI is conscious or not, if neuroscience has been useful in unravelling the deep questions of consciousness, the illusions that dominate our brains, If we are living in a world where 99% of people are philosophical zombies and we just don’t know and much more… 00:00 Most Unsettling Idea About Consciousness 06:04 How Unintuitive Is Consciousness? 09:31 What Does It Mean To Live In The Present Moment? 19:14 Various Ranges Of Consciousness 23:47 Theories Of Consciousness 30:36 Is Consciousness Overrated? 33:00 How Likely Will AI Unveil Insights About Consciousness? 35:59 How Do You Experience Magnetic North? 42:42 Studies Behind Behaviours In Plants 47:26 Current Stance Annaka Is At About Consciousness 53:53 Does Quantum Physics Have Any Relation To Consciousness? 1:00:21 The Future Of Consciousness Research 1:04:07 Where To Find Annaka - Get a 20% discount on Nomatic’s amazing luggage at https://nomatic.com/modernwisdom Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period from Shopify at https://shopify.com/modernwisdom Find Kettle & Fire Maui Nui Venison Bone Broth at Whole Foods stores nationwide. - 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/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - 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 WilliamsonhostAnnaka Harrisguest

Apr 12, 20251h 4mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: April 12, 2025
Duration: 1h 4m
Channel: Modern Wisdom
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Annaka Harris is an author, editor, and speaker focused on neuroscience and consciousness. What does it mean to be conscious? What is consciousness? These questions have puzzled humanity for millennia. Despite our greatest scientific breakthroughs and philosophical efforts, are we any closer to understanding the origins and true nature of consciousness? Expect to learn the most unsettling idea about consciousness that keeps Annaka up at night, if consciousness is behind our eyes, if love is a 3 dimensional construct, if consciousness is just a malfunction of the brain, rather than an essential feature, if AI is conscious or not, if neuroscience has been useful in unravelling the deep questions of consciousness, the illusions that dominate our brains, If we are living in a world where 99% of people are philosophical zombies and we just don’t know and much more… 00:00 Most Unsettling Idea About Consciousness 06:04 How Unintuitive Is Consciousness? 09:31 What Does It Mean To Live In The Present Moment? 19:14 Various Ranges Of Consciousness 23:47 Theories Of Consciousness 30:36 Is Consciousness Overrated? 33:00 How Likely Will AI Unveil Insights About Consciousness? 35:59 How Do You Experience Magnetic North? 42:42 Studies Behind Behaviours In Plants 47:26 Current Stance Annaka Is At About Consciousness 53:53 Does Quantum Physics Have Any Relation To Consciousness? 1:00:21 The Future Of Consciousness Research 1:04:07 Where To Find Annaka - Get a 20% discount on Nomatic’s amazing luggage at https://nomatic.com/modernwisdom Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period from Shopify at https://shopify.com/modernwisdom Find Kettle & Fire Maui Nui Venison Bone Broth at Whole Foods stores nationwide. - 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/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - 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
Annaka Harris
guest

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Modern Wisdom, featuring Chris Williamson and Annaka Harris, The One Question That No Scientist Can Answer - Annaka Harris explores annaka Harris Questions Whether Consciousness Is Fundamental To Reality Annaka Harris discusses why consciousness remains an intractable scientific mystery, focusing on the unexplained transition from non-conscious matter to subjective experience. She argues that science is uniquely ill-equipped to study first-person experience, since consciousness can only be directly known from the inside, and challenges the assumption that it arises solely from complex brain processing. Drawing on neuroscience (binding, split-brain, locked-in syndrome), plant behavior, and sensory substitution research, she suggests our intuitions about self, causality, and complexity are likely wrong. Harris entertains the possibility that consciousness may be a fundamental feature of the universe, not a late-emerging byproduct, and imagines future science that expands and shares conscious experience itself.

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