thescientist | Ever since I switched my research focus
from theoretical physics to neuroscience many years ago, my professional
life has focused on the “easy problem” of consciousness—exploring
relationships between brain activity and mind. So-called signatures of
consciousness, such as increased blood oxygen or electrical activity
patterns in different brain regions, are recorded using several
different imaging methods, including electroencephalography (EEG) and
functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
The “hard problem”— how and why neural activity produces our conscious
awareness—presents a much more profound puzzle. Like many scientists and
nonscientists alike, I have a long-running fascination with the mystery
of consciousness, which serves as the inspiration for my latest book, The New Science of Consciousness.
A new approach to studying consciousness is emerging based on
collaborations between neuroscientists and complexity scientists. Such
partnerships encompass subfields of mathematics, physics, psychology,
psychiatry, philosophy, and more. This cross-disciplinary effort aims to
reveal fresh insights into the major challenges of both the easy and
the hard problems. How does human consciousness differ from the apparent
consciousness of other animals? Do we enjoy genuine free will or are we
slaves to unconscious systems? Above all, how can the interactions of a
hundred billion nerve cells lead to the mysterious condition called
consciousness?
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