Description

What is consciousness, and why has it
become such a controversial subject?
Consciousness has been described as “simultaneously
the most familiar and the most mysterious thing in
the universe.” It is something we experience in all our
waking moments, yet science still struggles to agree
about what it is or how it has arisen.
Among the many controversies covered by the book
is the current debate over artificial intelligence. Can
non-biological creatures such as robots share the
power that we call consciousness?
This “Book of Thinking” takes an exceptionally broad
approach by exploring what science, philosophy, and
the arts have to say about consciousness. Sometimes
these traditions clash and collide in their views, but
each yields rich insights. The book presents a range of
innovative ways to understand the nature of subjective experience.