The Origins Podcast with Lawrence Krauss Joseph LeDoux
Dec 5, 2020
Joseph LeDoux, a renowned neuroscientist and author at NYU, dives into the depths of human consciousness and emotions. He discusses his latest book, revealing the evolutionary journey of conscious brains. From the complexities of memory formation to the split brain's influence on identity, LeDoux elucidates how emotions shape our behaviors. He also examines the role of language in self-reflection and connects the dots between learning and evolutionary adaptations, ultimately pondering the future of consciousness amidst rising challenges.
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From Marketing To Neuroscience
- Joseph LeDoux describes shifting from marketing to neuroscience after taking psychology courses and falling in love with brain and memory research.
- He trained extensively at Stony Brook and in Don Reese's lab, gaining anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry over many years.
Tools Shift Science But Ideas Matter
- New tools transformed neuroscience from artlike speculation into a data-rich empirical science.
- LeDoux warns methodologies can dominate and stresses the need for big conceptual questions.
Three Functional Types Of Consciousness
- LeDoux frames consciousness as three types: anoetic, noetic, and autonoetic, tied to memory complexity.
- Autonoetic consciousness uniquely involves the self and episodic mental time travel.
