227 - David Eagleman: Synesthesia, Brain Plasticity, AI, and Conspiracy Theories

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David Eagleman is a neuroscientist at Stanford University who works on synesthesia, brain plasticity, and sensory substitution, among other topics. He is also a bestselling author, the host of the Inner Cosmos podcast, and writer and presenter of the international PBS series The Brain with David Eagleman. In this episode, Robinson and David discuss brain plasticity and its optimization, the neuroscience of language-learning, consciousness and animal minds, synesthesia, sensory substitution, artificial intelligence, conspiracy theories, and more. David’s most recent book is Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain (Vintage, 2021).

David’s Website: eagleman.com

Livewired: a.co/d/67w3TQ3

Inner Cosmos: eagleman.com/podcast

OUTLINE

00:00:53 David’s Interest in the Mind

00:02:52 Solving A Problem of Kant with Modern Neuroscience

00:06:08 On Brain Plasticity and How to Maximize It

00:15:23 Do Children Really Learn Languages Faster than Adults?

00:19:46 Using Neuroscience to Maximize Weight Loss and Improve Diet Outcomes

00:22:09 Was Helen Keller Conscious?

00:24:14 Why Neuroscience Hasn’t Figured Out Consciousness

00:28:32 What Really Is Synesthesia?

00:36:44 On Animal Consciousness and Eating Meat

00:42:56 What Is Intelligence?

00:45:52 What Is the Intelligence Echo Illusion?

00:52:02 Will ChatGPT Surpass Our Greatest Thinkers?

00:55:50 Do We Need to Replace the Turing Test?

01:05:57 Inner Cosmos

01:09:16 Why Does the Brain Love Conspiracy Theories?

01:11:33 Why Does the Brain Fall for Magic Tricks?

01:13:14 Why Can’t We Tickle Ourselves?

Robinson’s Website: robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.