David Boles: Human Meme

The Mirror and the Machine: A Meditation on Consciousness and Self-Awareness


Listen Later

Consciousness is the raw fact of experience itself, what philosophers call qualia. It's the redness of red, the sharp bite of winter air, that peculiar texture of anxiety sitting in your chest. Consciousness is simply the lights being on, the "something it is like" to be you. A mouse likely has consciousness; it experiences pain, pleasure, fear, but probably has little to no self-awareness. Self-awareness, by contrast, is consciousness turned inward and recognizing itself. It's not just experiencing, but knowing that you are the one experiencing. It's the ability to form a concept of "I" as distinct from "not-I," to see yourself as an object in the world with a past and future.
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

David Boles: Human MemeBy David Boles

  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7

3.7

7 ratings