A talk Rupert gave at a symposium on the philosophy of form Cambridge University in May 2022. A long debate about the nature and causes of forms has been going on at least since the time of ancient Greece, and within the sciences has been most hotly contested in relation to the morphogenesis of plants and animals. Since the seventeenth century, mechanists – still the dominant orthodoxy – have tried to explain morphogenesis in terms of material causes present in eggs, whereas vitalists and holistic biologists have suggested explanations in terms of formative forces and, more recently, morphogenetic fields. This debate continues, and could well help to revolutionize not only biology, but also chemistry and physics.

A three-way conversation, or trialogue, in two parts.

Part I The crisis in science: collision between the permanent and evolutionary views of the nature of reality. The universe as an evolving system of habits. Did natural law exist before the Big Bang? Cosmic creativity, imagination and the womb of chaos. Chaotic sudden perturbations. The Omega Point. The ego's response to chaos. The cosmic attractor in the evolutionary process.

This Trialogue and others are available in book form:
https://www.sheldrake.org/books-by-rupert-sheldrake/the-evolutionary-mind

Terence McKenna was an ethnopharmacologist, shamanologist, and author, known for his theories on plant hallucinogens and the novelty wave, and the bardic skill with which he conveyed his ideas. Sadly Terence died aged 53 on April 3, 2000.

Ralph Abraham, PhD, is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, author, and pioneer in the fields of Chaos theory, computer graphics, visual mathematics and dynamical systems. 

A three-way conversation, or trialogue, recorded at Esalen in 1989.

A discussion on the evolution of consciousness as it relates to machines. Symbolic logic, nanotechnology and the possibility of a synthetic super-intelligence. Artificial Intelligence as a part of ourselves that could shape our evolution. Virtual computers as the source of the AI. Partnership or conflict between human and machine? How much control do we have in the evolution of machine intelligence? Challenges to the premises of the AI argument. Quantum computers, machine-time and the possibilities of the World Wide Web.

Rupert speaks with Paul Kingsnorth [author, deputy editor of The Ecologist], and Dr Philip Goff [author, Professor of Philosophy at Durham University] about the possible benefits of religious practices, without their associated beliefs. 

This is part of the _Meeting of the Minds_ series offered by The Weekend University
https://theweekenduniversity.com/about/

Paul Kingsnorth is a former journalist and deputy editor of The Ecologist magazine who has won several awards for his poetry and essays. He is also the author of ten books: both fiction and nonfiction. In 2009, he co-founded the Dark Mountain Project, an international network of writers, artists, and thinkers in search of new stories for troubled times. 
Philip_Goff

Dr Philip Goff is a Professor of Philosophy at Durham University, whose main research focus is consciousness, but he is interested in many questions about the nature of reality. Goff is most known for defending panpsychism, the view that consciousness is a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of the physical world. He has authored an academic book with Oxford University Press – Consciousness and Fundamental Reality – and a book aimed at a general audience – Galileo’s Error. He is currently working on a book exploring the middle ground between God and atheism. 

This excerpt is from the Institute of Art and Ideas debate "Fantasy and the void" featuring Slavoj Žižek, Rupert Sheldrake and Jennifer Ratner-Rosenhagen. Wes Alwan hosts.

Watch the full talk:
https://iai.tv/video/fantasy-and-the-void

The Institute of Art and Ideas features videos and articles from cutting edge thinkers discussing the ideas that are shaping the world, from metaphysics to string theory, technology to democracy, aesthetics to genetics.

Slavoj Žižek is a globally renowned philosopher and cultural critic. He is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, visiting professor at New York University and a senior researcher at the University of Ljubljana's Department of Philosophy. He is the author of several books, including The Sublime Object of Ideology, The Parallax View, Living in the End Times and Heaven in Disorder. His unique style of philosophy, which is often imbued with humour and political incorrectness, has gained him admirers and critics across the globe.

A three-way conversation, or trialogue, recorded at Esalen in 1989.

What could have been the cause for the breakthrough in the evolution of human consciousness around 50,000 years ago? Collective memories of predation and how they may shape our minds today. The role of the imagination in our evolution. Physiological evolution and the idea of divine brain surgery. The psilocybin hypothesis. The transformation of human nature through connection with higher levels of consciousness in the universe. The universal information field and cosmic evolution. 

This Trialogue and others are available in book form:
https://www.sheldrake.org/books-by-rupert-sheldrake/the-evolutionary-mind

Terence McKenna was an ethnopharmacologist, shamanologist, and author, known for his theories on plant hallucinogens and the novelty wave, and the bardic skill with which he conveyed his ideas. Sadly Terence died aged 53 on April 3, 2000.

Ralph Abraham, PhD, is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, author, and pioneer in the fields of Chaos theory, computer graphics, visual mathematics and dynamical systems. 

In this introduction to the trialogues held at Hazelwood house in Devon, England in June 1993, Rupert, Ralph and Terence introduce each other and give their perspectives on their friends' lives, characters and work. 

Terence McKenna was an ethnopharmacologist, shamanologist, and author, known for his theories on plant hallucinogens and the novelty wave, and the bardic skill with which he conveyed his ideas. Sadly Terence died aged 53 on April 3, 2000.

Ralph Abraham, PhD, is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, author, and pioneer in the fields of Chaos theory, computer graphics, visual mathematics and dynamical systems. 

Hollyhock, 2007

Andrew Weil, MD, is a world-renowned pioneer in the field of integrative medicine, an approach to health care which encompasses body, mind, and spirit. Rupert and Andrew had a series of conversations over eight years at Hollyhock, on Cortes Island, BC, Canada.

Hollyhock, 2007

Andrew Weil, MD, is a world-renowned pioneer in the field of integrative medicine, an approach to health care which encompasses body, mind, and spirit. Rupert and Andrew had a series of conversations over eight years at Hollyhock, on Cortes Island, BC, Canada.

A talk given on September 2nd, 2022 at the Hollyhock retreat center on Cortes Island, BC Canada.

Hollyhock exists to inspire, nourish and support people who are making the world better. Their not-for-profit learning centre offers extraordinary leadership programs to advance consciousness, connection & cultural transformation.

https://www.hollyhock.ca/