Why does it feel like something to be alive? For one of the boldest thinkers in neuroscience, solving this puzzle has been a lifetime's quest. Now, at last, Mark Solms, who discovered the brain mechanism for dreaming, has arrived at his answer. More than just a philosophical argument, the Free Energy theory will profoundly change how you understand your existence. The very idea that a breakthrough is possible may seem outrageous. Isn't consciousness intangible, beyond the reach of empirical methods? Yet Solms shows in forensic detail how misguided assumptions have concealed its nature. Only by sticking closely to the medical facts does a way past our obstacles appear. Join him on an extraordinary voyage into the strange realms beyond and learn what we are.

In this episode, we cover this and more:

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:58 Consciousness research was frowned upon in Neuroscience

00:01:17 Mark’s Sleep-Wake Cycle Research, REM Sleep

00:19:11 Oliver Sachs’ Patients and Dopamine Treatments

00:30:31 The Challenge of Dopamine Medication and Loss of Motivation, ADHD, Parkinson’s and More.

00:44:11 Neuro-Psychoanalysis and the case of Mr S and Confabulatory Amnesia 

00:54:49 Fredu’s Wishful System

01:01:12 Common Language and the Baggage of Language 

01:07:19 Conclusion

The open access article authored by Mark Solms and Karl Friston: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02714/full