Iain McGilchrist discusses panpsychism, the hemispheres of the brain, and the nature of the human mind.
Is consciousness a fundamental feature of the universe?
With a free trial, you can watch Iain debate the role of memory NOW at https://iai.tv/video/i-forget-therefore-i-am?utm_source=YouTube&utm_medium=description
For most scientists, the mind is little more than a machine. With the rise of AI, some now claim that computers may themselves become conscious. For acclaimed neuroscientist, psychiatrist, and philosopher Iain McGilchrist, this is a profound mistake. The attempt to explain the mind in purely mechanistic terms reflects the flawed assumptions of materialism and reductionism – both symptoms of a civilisation dangerously dominated by left-hemisphere thinking. To understand mind and matter, he argues, we need to restore the right hemisphere to its rightful primacy and move beyond materialism.
#consciousness #philosophy #science #mind #neuroscience
Iain McGilchrist is a distinguished British neuroscientist, psychiatrist and philosopher. A former Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, Iain McGilchrist also worked as a consulting psychiatrist, and is known for his influential work on the relationship between the structure of our brains, human cultures and our understanding of the world.
Oliver Adelson is Philosophy Desk Lead at the Institute of Art and Ideas. He is also Head of Speaker Booking for the IAI's HowTheLightGetsIn Festival.
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. Subscribe today! https://iai.tv/subscribe?utm_source=YouTube&utm_medium=description&utm_campaign=iain-mcgilchrist-studio-2026
00:00 INTRO: Iain McGilchrist on panpsychism
00:44 Have we had too much left hemisphere thinking?
03:07 Does the right hemisphere mirror reality?
05:13 What are the implications of your account for science and for the scientific method?
09:05 Does the dominance of reductionist and materialist paradigms explain why we haven’t seen an Einstein in recent years?
10:54 If matter itself remains deeply mysterious, why is it so often assumed that the mind is the greater problem in debates about mind and body?
14:04 Is there something fundamentally different about the machine metaphor for consciousness, or is it just the latest?
16:32 Could there be an A.I. model for right hemisphere thinking?
18:33 Will the next epoch of humanity be dominated by the right hemisphere?
For debates and talks: https://iai.tv
For articles: https://iai.tv/articles
For courses: https://iai.tv/iai-academy/courses