Conversations for the Curious is a weekly economics talk show on econtalk.org. This week, Russ Roberts talks with neuroscientist Patrick House about his book 19 Ways of Looking at Consciousness. The program also features guest-curated essays by economists and academics from around the world.
While operating on a 16-year-old girl who suffered from severe seizures, neurosurgeon Itzhak Fried stumbled on the region of the brain that makes us laugh. To neuroscientist Patrick House, Fried's ability to produce laughter surgically raises deep and disconcerting questions about how the brain works. Join Fried, House, and EconTalk's Russ Roberts for a live broadcast from Jerusalem's Shalem College that is a sequel of sorts to House's earlier appearance on EconTalk. House and Fried discuss the mystery of consciousness and try to square the biological bases for emotions with the circle of our humanity.