Lex Fridman Podcast

David Chalmers: The Hard Problem of Consciousness

Jan 29, 2020

David Chalmers, a leading philosopher and cognitive scientist, dives into the enigma of consciousness and its philosophical implications. He discusses the fascinating concept of simulation theory, questioning whether our reality is a mere illusion. Chalmers explores consciousness in virtual environments and the profound implications of synesthesia. The conversation also touches on free will, the relationship between consciousness and AI, and moral dilemmas posed by cloning. This thought-provoking dialogue challenges listeners to contemplate the essence of existence.

01:39:06

Creator website

Episode guests

David Chalmers

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Episode notes

Intro

2min

Exploring Reality and Simulation Theory

2min

Perception and the Simulation Hypothesis

10min

Consciousness in Simulation: Exploring Mind and Reality

13min

Exploring Synesthesia and Consciousness

5min

Exploring the Depths of Consciousness and Qualia

3min

Unraveling Consciousness: From Infants to AI

22min

Consciousness and Ethical Dilemmas

15min

Exploring Free Will and Consciousness

12min

10.

Consciousness and AGI: A Complex Relationship

12min

11.

Exploring the Philosophical Future of Immortality and Consciousness

3min

David Chalmers is a philosopher and cognitive scientist specializing in philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, and consciousness. He is perhaps best known for formulating the hard problem of consciousness which could be stated as “why does the feeling which accompanies awareness of sensory information exist at all?”

This conversation is part of the Artificial Intelligence podcast. If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/ai or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon.

This episode is presented by Cash App. Download it (App Store, Google Play), use code “LexPodcast”.

Here’s the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.

00:00 – Introduction
02:23 – Nature of reality: Are we living in a simulation?
19:19 – Consciousness in virtual reality
27:46 – Music-color synesthesia
31:40 – What is consciousness?
51:25 – Consciousness and the meaning of life
57:33 – Philosophical zombies
1:01:38 – Creating the illusion of consciousness
1:07:03 – Conversation with a clone
1:11:35 – Free will
1:16:35 – Meta-problem of consciousness
1:18:40 – Is reality an illusion?
1:20:53 – Descartes’ evil demon
1:23:20 – Does AGI need conscioussness?
1:33:47 – Exciting future
1:35:32 – Immortality

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