To the extent that consciousness is useful, it is useful in small quantities, and for very particular kinds of tasks. It's easy to understand why you would not want to be consciously aware of the intricacies of your muscle movement, but this can be less intuitive when applied to your perceptions, thoughts, and beliefs, which are also final products of the activity of billions of nerve cells.
From the Blog
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Brain Time
The days of thinking of time as a river—evenly flowing, always advancing—are over. Time perception, just like vision, is a construction of the brain.
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The Science of Waiting
For many years I've been studying how human brains perceive the passage of time.
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Profile in The New Yorker
I had the pleasure of being profiled by my favorite magazine, The New Yorker. Read the article here.
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Italy's STYLE magazine: Idea Guys
Think it's unlikely for a scientist to be featured on the cover of an Italian fashion magazine? Me too! But strange things happen...
In other news...
New York Times bestseller
A 26 week New York Times bestseller, Incognito was named a Best Book of the Year by both Amazon and Goodreads. For a taste of the book, see a review in the Wall Street Journal, listen to a conversation on NPR's Fresh Air, or watch a video dialog with Wired Magazine. Reading Incognito now? We'd love to hear feedback!
The secret life of the lab
Want to know more about the inner workings of a neuroscience lab? Watch a video profile of David and his students on NOVA Science Now.
New Scientist interview on the V.E.S.T.
Your reality need not be constrained by your biology. Read the interview here.
