Karl Friston on Consciousness & The Dawn of Mind | Living Mirrors #141
Living Mirrors with Dr. James CookeShow Notes
Karl Friston is a theoretical neurobiologist and Professor of Neuroscience at University College London. He is also an honorary consultant at UCL's Queen Square Institute of Neurology and is a fellow of both the Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society. He also happens to be the most cited neuroscientist in the world. Karl kindly read and gave a blurb for the book: "A remarkably current and forward-looking treatment. This book uses all my favourite words—in the right order—and some I have never encountered before. It offers a delightful narrative, grounded in state-of-the-art thinking about what it is to be an observer or, in the author's words, BEING IS BELIEVING." https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dawn-Mind-Matter-Became-Conscious/dp/1633889920/
More from Living Mirrors with Dr. James Cooke
https://www.contemplativesciencelab.com/
Rupert Read is an environmental philosopher, public intellectual, and activist. He was formerly an associate professor of philosophy at the University of East Anglia in the UK, was a leading figure within Extinction Rebellion, and now leads the Climate Majority Project. His books include "Why Climate Breakdown Matters," "Deep Adaptation: Navigating the Realities of Climate Chaos," and "Parents for a Future". Today we discuss why spirituality and philosophy are crucial for understanding ecological breakdown.
Manda Scott is a bestselling author and former veterinary surgeon. She is the author of 16 books including the international bestselling Boudica: Dreaming series which depicts life in pre-Roman Britain and has been translated into over twenty languages. Her 2024 novel, Any Human Power, is an example of Thrutopian fiction, stories that show possible routes to a better future, and is a call to action for us to contribute to a different, generative, equitable and just way forward. She is the host of the Accidental Gods Podcast which explores ways through the metacrisis that we are currently living through. Today we discuss the metacrisis and thrutopian fiction.
https://www.innerspaceinstitute.org/
Francis Weller is a psychotherapist and author of many books including The Wild Edge of Sorrow, The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation, and his upcoming book In the Absence of the Ordinary: Soul Work for Times of Uncertainty. He founded and directs WisdomBridge, an organization that offers educational programs that seek to integrate wisdom from indigenous cultures with knowledge from western traditions. Today we discuss grief and soul activism.