Sentience

18. Do Elephants Have Names? The Hidden Minds of Animals with Mickey Pardo, PhD

What if we’ve been dramatically underestimating what it’s like to be another animal? In this episode of Sentience, animal cognition researcher Mickey Pardo, PhD takes us

17. Bruno Olshausen, PhD on how the brain compresses, sees, and makes sense of the world

In this episode of Sentience, Bruno Olshausen, PhD, professor at UC Berkeley, tells the story of how he went from wanting to build brain-like robots to uncovering one of

16. Yi-Li Wu, PhD on the forgotten global history of anesthesia

In this episode of Sentience, Yi-Li Wu, PhD, Associate Professor of History and Women's and Gender Studies at the University of Michigan, explores the overlooked history

15. Osh Agabi on wetware, biological sensing, and the future of living machines

In this episode of Sentience, Osh Agabi, CEO of Koniku Inc., explores what happens when technology is built not just with silicon, but with living biology. We discuss his

14. Joel Frohlich, PhD on brain waves, entropy, and consciousness

In this episode of Sentience, Joel Frohlich, PhD explores how scientists study consciousness through brain signals. We discuss why familiar brain waves can sometimes misl

13. Alysson Muotri, PhD on how brain organoids are transforming neuroscience, evolution, and medicine

In this episode of Sentience, Alysson Muotri, PhD, professor at UC San Diego, discusses how brain organoids—lab-grown neural tissues derived from stem cells—are reshaping

12. Thomas Hartung, PhD on how lab-grown and artificial intelligence can phase out animal testing

In this episode of Sentience, we talk with Thomas Hartung, PhD, about how organoids and AI are reshaping biomedical science. Hartung explains how AI models can predict th

11. Shaolei Ren, PhD on AI’s hidden environmental costs and the path to sustainable computing

In this episode of Sentience, we speak with Shaolei Ren, PhD, about the hidden environmental footprint of artificial intelligence. From the enormous water and energy dema

10. Barbara Finlay, PhD on how brains develop and evolve

In this episode, I speak with evolutionary neuroscientist Barbara Finlay, PhD, whose pioneering research has reshaped our understanding of brain evolution. Barbara shares

9. Glenn Fox, PhD on the science of gratitude

In this episode of Sentience, neuroscientist Dr. Glenn Fox takes us on a fascinating journey through the science of gratitude. From his pioneering brain-imaging studies o

8. Farah Lubin, PhD on epigenetics and the brain

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Farah Lubin, a neuroscientist from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, to explore the fascinating world of epigenetics in the br

7. Gill Livingston, MD on preventing dementia

In this episode, I chat with Dr. Gill Livingston about her groundbreaking research on dementia. Dr. Livingston has played an important role in uncovering the lifestyle, e

6. Athina Demertzi, PhD on the neuroscience of consciousness

In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Athina Demertzi, PhD, a neuroscientist at the University of Liège who studies human consciousness, especially in pat

5. Stephen Coombes, PhD on neural field theory

In this episode, I talk with Stephen Coombes, Ph.D. about neural field theory, or the theory of brainwaves. Dr. Coombes is Professor of Applied Mathematics in the School

4. Jay Skelton, PhD and Andrew Leker on AI for mental health

In this episode I talk with clinical psychologist Jay Skelton, Ph.D. and software engineer Andrew Leker about Willow. Willow is a new, empathetic AI specifically designed

3. Michael Treanor, PhD on the science of cognitive-behavioral therapy

In this episode, I talk with Michael Treanor, PhD about the science of cognitive-behavioral therapy, and its foundations in the psychology and neuroscience of learning an

2. Grace Lindsay, PhD on neuroscience and artificial intelligence

In this podcast, Grace Lindsay, Ph.D. and I discuss some of the many fascinating intersections between neuroscience and artificial intelligence.

1. Minimally conscious patient meets scientist who woke him up

Bradley Crehan wasn't regaining consciousness after his brain injury, but then he became the first person in the world to receive an experimental treatment developed at U