Huberman Lab
My guest is Dr. Christof Koch, PhD, a pioneering researcher on the topic of consciousness, an investigator at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and the chief scientist at the Tiny Blue Dot Foundation. We discuss the neuroscience of consciousness—how it arises in our brain, how it shapes our identity and how we can modify and expand it. Dr. Koch explains how we all experience life through a unique “perception box,” which holds our beliefs, our memories and thus our biases about reality. We discuss how human consciousness is changed by meditation, non-sleep deep rest, psychedelics, dreams and virtual reality. We also discuss neuroplasticity (rewiring the brain), flow states and the ever-changing but also persistent aspect of the “collective consciousness” of humanity.
Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com.
Thank you to our sponsors
AGZ by AG1: https://drinkagz.com/huberman
BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/huberman
Our Place: https://fromourplace.com/huberman
Helix: https://helixsleep.com/huberman
LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman
Timestamps
(0:00) Christof Koch
(2:31) Consciousness; Self, Flow States
(8:02) NSDR, Yoga Nidra, Liminal States; State of Being, Intelligence vs Consciousness
(13:14) Sponsors: BetterHelp & Our Place
(15:53) Self, Derealization, Psychedelics; Selflessness & Flow States
(19:53) Transformative Experience, VR, Racism & Self; Perception Box, Bayesian Model
(28:29) Oliver Sacks, Empathy & Animals
(34:01) Changing Outlook on Life, Tool: Belief & Agency
(37:48) Sponsors: AGZ by AG1 & Helix Sleep
(40:23) Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) & Higher Power
(42:09) Neurobiology of Consciousness; Accidents, Covert Consciousness
(51:09) Non-Responsive State; Disability Bias, Will to Live, Resilience
(55:34) Will to Live, Akinetic Mutism, Neural Correlates of Consciousness
(57:43) Conflicting Perception Boxes, Meta Prior, Religion, AI
(1:06:47) AI, Violence, Swapping Perception Boxes, Video
(1:12:19) 5-MeO-DMT, Psychedelics, Light, Consciousness & Awe; Loss of Self
(1:20:54) Death, Mystical Experience, Ocean Analogy; Physicalism & Observer
(1:27:57) Sponsor: LMNT
(1:29:29) Meditation, Tool: Spacetime Bridging; Ball-bearing Analogy; Digital Twin
(1:36:16) Mental Health Decline, Social Media, Pandemic, Family & Play, Tool: Body-Awareness Exercises
(1:41:34) Dog Breeds; Movement, Cognitive Flexibility & Longevity
(1:47:17) Cynicism, Ketamine, Tool: Belief Effect; Heroes & Finding Flaws
(1:52:46) Cynicism vs Curiosity, Compassion; Deaths of Despair, Mental Health Crisis
(1:57:26) Jennifer Aniston, Recognition & Neurons; Grandmother Hypothesis
(2:03:20) Book Recommendation; Meaning of Life
(2:09:10) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow & Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Dr. Anna Lembke: Understanding & Treating Addiction
This episode I interview Dr. Anna Lembke, M.D., Chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Lembke is a psychiatrist expert in treating addictions of all kinds:…
How to Control Your Sense of Pain & Pleasure
This episode I discuss our sense of pain and pleasure: where and how they each arise in our mind and body and various ways to control their intensity. I discuss the science of behavioral tools…
Dr. Matt Walker: The Science & Practice of Perfecting Your Sleep
In this episode, my guest is Dr. Matt Walker, Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology and the Founder & Director of the Center for Human Sleep Science at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also…
How to Optimize Your Brain-Body Function & Health
This episode I describe how the organs of the body influence the function and health of our brain and how our brain controls our bodily organs. The conscious awareness of this brain-body dialogue is called…
Dr. Lex Fridman: Machines, Creativity & Love
Dr. Lex Fridman PhD, is a scientist at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), working on robotics, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles and human-robot interactions. He is also the host of the Lex Fridman Podcast where he…
Maximizing Productivity, Physical & Mental Health with Daily Tools
In this episode, I discuss science-supported tools for enhancing focus, learning, creativity, sleep, physical strength and endurance and brain and body health. I explain each protocol in detail, the rationale behind it, and how the…
The Science of Hearing, Balance & Accelerated Learning
This episode I describe how our ears and nervous system decode sound waves and gravity to allow us to hear and make sense of sounds. I also describe protocols for rapid learning of sound and…
Dr. Karl Deisseroth: Understanding & Healing the Mind
Dr. Karl Deisseroth, MD, PhD, is a clinical psychiatrist and scientist who directs a bioengineering research laboratory at Stanford University School of Medicine. His work aims to understand and develop treatments for disorders of the…
How Smell, Taste & Pheromone-Like Chemicals Control You
This episode explains how we sense chemicals through smell, taste, and pheromones. How things smell and taste and chemicals in the tears, breath, and on the skin of others have a profound effect on how…
The Science of Vision, Eye Health & Seeing Better
This episode I describe how we see, meaning how our eyes focus, convert light information into electricity the rest of the brain can understand and how our brain creates the incredible thing we experience as…