CogNation
by CogNation Media
Latest episode
AI and Consciousness: The Turing Test
AI and Consciousness: The Turing Test
About this podcast
CogNation is a podcast by Rolf Nelson and Joe Hardy, two cognitive psychologists interested in the future of brain science and technology. We explore relevant topics in the areas of cognitive science, technology, AI, and philosophy. Although we dabble with dystopian implications of new technologies (such as the impending robopocalypse), we are led by our curiosity and try to keep it light and fun. https://www.facebook.com/CognationPodcast/ email: [email protected]
Episodes
The newest 20 of 70 episodes
- AI and Consciousness: The Turing Test · 59 minIn this first in a series discussing the topic of AI and consciousness, Rolf and Joe discuss the Turing Test, a proposal by Alan Turing in 1950 to address the question of whether…
- Balazs Szigeti: Unblinding Effects in Psychedelic Research · 55 minFor the third time, Joe and Rolf talk to Dr. Balazs Szigeti about psychedelics for the treatment of depression. This time, Balazs discusses his recent paper that shows an…
- Dr. Valerie Bonnelle: The autonomic nervous system and peak experience · 1 h 1 minOn this episode, Rolf and Joe talk to Dr. Valerie Bonnelle, a cognitive neuroscientist interested in the relation of processes in the body to peak experiences. We discuss her…
- Dr. Bradley Cooke: The National Institutes of Health · 54 minWhat do the National Institutes of Health (NIH) do, and who works there? Rolf and Joe talk to Dr. Bradley Cooke…
- Compass Pathway's Dr. Steve Levine · 51 min · Season 7 Episode 66Fresh from Psychedelic Science 2025, Dr. Steve Levine, the chief patient officer at Compass Pathways, talks to us about new Phase 3 results for psilocybin in treating depression.
- Psychedelic Science 2025 · 34 minJoe reports back from the Psychedelic Science conference held recently again in Denver, Colorado. After some discussion about the conference, Joe speaks with Balasz Szigeti (who…
- Joshua Miele: Connecting Dots · 1 h 15 minJoe and Rolf talk to blind activist and friend of the show Josh Miele. Josh, a MacArthur Genuis Award winner and prodigious sushi eater, has just come out with a new…
- Expanding our Moral Circle with Philosopher Jeff Sebo · 1 h 18 minRolf and Joe talk to NYU philosopher Jeff Sebo about his new book "The Moral Circle", which makes the case for expanding our circle of who is deserving of ethical consideration…
- Dreaming (part 3) with Antti Revonsuo · 1 h 36 min · Season 4 Episode 60Rolf and Joe wrap up their 3-part series on dreaming with Finnish neuroscientist and philosopher Antti Revonsuo. Dr. Revonsuo is the originator of the Threat Simulation theory of…
- Dreams and Anaesthesia: Guest Pilleriin Sikka · 44 min · Season 4 Episode 59In their second episode in a series on dreaming, Joe and Rolf are joined by Dr. Pilleriin Sikka, a Stanford neuroscientist who is currently studying the therapeutic value of…
- Why do we dream? · 48 min · Season 3 Episode 59Why do we dream, and what is the meaning of our dreams? Rolf and Joe talk about several ideas about dreaming, including a new theory by David Eagleman called the "defensive…
- Daniel Dennett: A Retrospective · 48 minDaniel Dennett, who passed away on April 19th at the age of 82, was one of the great philosophers of our time. Rolf and Joe discuss his ideas and his influence on the field of…
- AI and Cognition with Daniel Sternberg · 1 h 21 min · Season 3 Episode 56What can neuroscience teach us about AI, and vice versa, what can AI teach us about our own intelligence? Joe and Rolf talk to returning guest Daniel Sternberg about advances in…
- Autism with guest Matthew Goodwin · 1 h 5 min · Season 4 Episode 55This episode is dedicated to the memory of colleague and friend Grace Baron [https://wheatoncollege.edu/news/no-time-like-now/]. Joe and Rolf talk to Dr. Matthew Goodwin, a…
- Donald Hoffman's Case Against Reality · 44 min · Season 4 Episode 54Joe and Rolf discuss the ideas of perceptual psychologist Donald Hoffman, who has argued that our perceptual systems have no access to reality, since evolution is driven by…
- Episode 53: Beckley Retreats CEO Neil Markey on guided psychedelic retreats · 56 min · Season 3 Episode 53Neil Markey, a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, used meditation for years to deal with depression and PTSD. He is currently CEO of Beckley Retreats, a group that runs retreats to…
- Episode 52: The IIT controversy with Felipe De Brigard · 1 h 9 min · Season 3 Episode 52We discuss the recent controversy about Integrated Information Theory (IIT), a theory about the neural correlates of consciousness, with Felipe De Brigard, a philosophy and…
- Episode 51: Robin Carhart-Harris: The promise of psychedelics · 2 h 3 min · Season 3 Episode 51Joe and Rolf talk to psychedelic researcher Robin Carhart-Harris. Robin is at the cutting edge of research on the therapeutic benefits of psychedelics such as psilocybin (magic…
- Episode 50: Neural Interfaces · 31 min · Season 3 Episode 50Joe and Rolf discuss new work in neural interfaces that is helping paralyzed individuals communicate. Based on the recent Nature article: Metzger, S. L., Littlejohn, K. T…
- Episode 49: The Self: Bundle and Ego Theories · 54 min · Season 3 Episode 49Rolf and Joe discuss two philosophical theories of the self, Bundle Theory and Ego Theory, based on a paper by Derek Parfit. They return to the topic of the teletransporter, and…
