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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Ten books I love
I have been asked in the past to list ten books that have "inspired, moved, and enlightened" me. Here's my list:
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A note about head shape in mummies
Not too long ago, I scanned a 3,000 mummy. What can (and can't) be concluded based on his perspicuously elongated skull shape, known as dolicocephy (elongated head)?
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The science of de- and re-humanization
Why do groups of people inflict violence on unarmed neighbors? (Germany, Rwanda, Darfur, Nanking....). Here's the neuroscience point of view.
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Q & A in New Scientist magazine
Read a Q&A with David in New Scientist to find out his ideas and advice to young scientists.
In other news...
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.
Neurolaw: The Brain on Trial
Want to know how neuroscience will force major changes in our criminal justice system? Read David's article The Brain on Trial in The Atlantic. Now anthologized in 2012 Best American Science and Nature Writing.
