In Conversations on Consciousness, Susan Blackmore interviews some of the great minds of our time, a who's who of eminent thinkers, all of whom have devoted much of their lives to understanding the concept of consciousness. The interviewees, ranging from major philosophers to renowned scientists, talk candidly with Blackmore about some of the key philosophical issues confronting us in a series of conversations that are revealing, insightful, and stimulating. They ruminate on the nature of consciousness (is it something apart from the brain?) and discuss if it is even possible to understand...

Wir Menschen sind erstaunliche Wesen. Unsere Korper sind in der Evolution - genau wie die aller Tiere - durch naturliche Selektion entstanden, und doch unterscheiden wir uns von samtlichen anderen Geschopfen in vielfaltiger Weise. Wir nutzen Sprache zur Kommunikation. Wir fuhren Kriege, glauben an Religionen, bestatten unsere Toten und sind bei Sex-Themen peinlich beruhrt. Wir sehen fern, fahren Auto und essen Eis. Warum sind wir so anders? Als einzige Vertreter unter den Tieren vermogen Menschen andere zu imitieren und konnen so Ideen, Angewohnheiten, Fahigkeiten, Verhaltensweisen,...

Im Frühjahr 2000 begann Susan Blackmore, Material für ein Radiofeature zum Thema Bewußtsein zu sammeln. Die Sendung kam nie zustande, aber die Idee, sich einem der großen Rätsel der menschlichen Existenz in Gesprächen zu nähern, ließ sie nicht mehr los. So entstanden zwanzig Interviews mit Philosophen und Naturwissenschaftlern, der Crème de la Crème der internationalen Bewußtseinsforschung, die hier Rede und Antwort steht. David Chalmers zum Beispiel, der erklärt, warum das Bewußtsein ein solch schwieriges Problem ist, oder Susan Greenfield, der zufolge man schon bei Sophokles...

Now in a new edition, this innovative text is the first volume to bring together all the major theories of consciousness studies-- from those rooted in traditional Western philosophy to those coming out of neuroscience, quantum theory, and Eastern philosophy. Broadly interdisciplinary, Consciousness: An Introduction, Second Edition, is divided into nine sections that examine such topics as how subjective experiences arise from objective brain processes, the basic neuroscience and neuropathology of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, mystical experiences and dreams, and the effects...

Das letzte ungelöste Rätsel der Menschheit wie kommen wir Menschen zu unserem Bewusstsein?

Exploring the Illusion of Free Will and Moral Responsibility investigates the philosophical and scientific arguments for free will skepticism and their implications. Skepticism about free will and moral responsibility has been on the rise in recent years. In fact, a significant number of philosophers, psychologists, and neuroscientists now either doubt or outright deny the existence of free will and/or moral responsibility--and the list of prominent skeptics appears to grow by the day. Given the profound importance that the concepts of free will and moral responsibility hold in our lives--in...

Consciousness, "the last great mystery for science," remains a hot topic. How can a physical brain create our experience of the world? What creates our identity? Do we really have free will? Could consciousness itself be an illusion?

Exciting new developments in brain science are continuing the debates on these issues, and the field has now expanded to include biologists, neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers. This controversial book clarifies the potentially confusing arguments, and the major theories, whilst also outlining the amazing pace of discoveries in neuroscience....