Joscha Bach is a cognitive scientist focusing on cognitive architectures, consciousness, models of mental representation, emotion, motivation and sociality.
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0:00:00 Introduction
0:00:17 Bach’s work ethic / daily routine
0:01:35 What is your definition of truth?
0:04:41 Nature’s substratum is a “quantum graph”?
0:06:25 Mathematics as the descriptor of all language
0:13:52 Why is constructivist mathematics “real”? What’s the definition of “real”?
0:17:06 What does it mean to “exist”? Does “pi” exist?
0:20:14 The mystery of something vs. nothing. Existence is the default.
0:21:11 Bach’s model vs. the multiverse
0:26:51 Is the universe deterministic
0:28:23 What determines the initial conditions, as well as the rules?
0:30:55 What is time? Is time fundamental?
0:34:21 What’s the optimal algorithm for finding truth?
0:40:40 Are the fundamental laws of physics ultimately “simple”?
0:50:17 The relationship between art and the artist’s cost function
0:54:02 Ideas are stories, being directed by intuitions
0:58:00 Society has a minimal role in training your intuitions
0:59:24 Why does art benefit from a repressive government?
1:04:01 A market case for civil rights
1:06:40 Fascism vs communism
1:10:50 Bach’s “control / attention / reflective recall” model
1:13:32 What’s more fundamental… Consciousness or attention?
1:16:02 The Chinese Room Experiment
1:25:22 Is understanding predicated on consciousness?
1:26:22 Integrated Information Theory of consciousness (IIT)
1:30:15 Donald Hoffman’s theory of consciousness
1:32:40 Douglas Hofstadter’s “strange loop” theory of consciousness
1:34:10 Holonomic Brain theory of consciousness
1:34:42 Daniel Dennett’s theory of consciousness
1:36:57 Sensorimotor theory of consciousness (embodied cognition)
1:44:39 What is intelligence?
1:45:08 Intelligence vs. consciousness
1:46:36 Where does Free Will come into play, in Bach’s model?
1:48:46 The opposite of free will can lead to, or feel like, addiction
1:51:48 Changing your identity to effectively live forever
1:59:13 Depersonalization disorder as a result of conceiving of your “self” as illusory
2:02:25 Dealing with a fear of loss of control
2:05:00 What about heart and conscience?
2:07:28 How to test / falsify Bach’s model of consciousness
2:13:46 How has Bach’s model changed in the past few years?
2:14:41 Why Bach doesn’t practice Lucid Dreaming anymore
2:15:33 Dreams and GAN’s (a machine learning framework)
2:18:08 If dreams are for helping us learn, why don’t we consciously remember our dreams
2:19:58 Are dreams “real”? Is all of reality a dream?
2:20:39 How do you practically change your experience to be most positive / helpful?
2:23:56 What’s more important than survival? What’s worth dying for?
2:28:27 Bach’s identity
2:29:44 Is there anything objectively wrong with hating humanity?
2:30:31 Practical Platonism
2:33:00 What “God” is
2:36:24 Gods are as real as you, Bach claims
2:37:44 What “prayer” is, and why it works
2:41:06 Our society has lost its future and thus our culture
2:43:24 What does Bach disagree with Jordan Peterson about?
2:47:16 The millennials are the first generation that’s authoritarian since WW2
2:48:31 Bach’s views on the “social justice” movement
2:51:29 Universal Basic Income as an answer to social inequality, or General Artificial Intelligence?
2:57:39 Nested hierarchy of “I”s (the conflicts within ourselves)
2:59:22 In the USA, innovation is “cheating” (for the most part)
3:02:27 Activists are usually operating on false information
3:03:04 Bach’s Marxist roots and lessons to his former self
3:08:45 BONUS BIT: On societies problems
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