What Is Mind? with William Gadea

In this episode of What Is Mind?, philosopher and translator Brook Ziporyn joins me to explore Daoism and Buddhism in China, and how their interaction gave rise to Chan (Zen) Buddhism. We discuss the elusive philosophy of the Dao De Jing, the playful and profound stories of the Zhuangzi, and the ways Daoist ideas shaped the development of Chinese Buddhism. Along the way we explore the I Ching, the...

What does it mean to practice Druidry in the modern world? In this conversation, I speak with Kevin Pennell about the historical Druids, the 18th-century revival, and what contemporary Druid practice looks like today. We discuss seasonal rituals like Beltane and Samhain, the Bardic tradition, reverence for nature, and how Druidry is expressed in his daily life. If you're interested in alternative...

What if the self you think you are… doesn’t actually exist? In this conversation, philosopher Jay L. Garfield argues that the “self” is a powerful cognitive illusion – and that letting go of it can make us more ethical, more compassionate, and more free , not less. Drawing from Buddhist philosophy, David Hume, and contemporary cognitive science , Garfield explains why consciousness isn’t a “thing,...

Do we really have free will — or is that just an illusion? Are our choices the result of physical and biological processes? In this video, I explore the classic free will debate from a scientific and philosophical perspective. Drawing on neuroscience, psychology, Buddhism, and contemporary philosophy, I ask two questions: 1) What is doing the willing? and 2) Is it free of causation? We look at: •...

Dr. Andrew Newberg is one of the pioneers of neurotheology – the scientific study of what happens in the brain during prayer, meditation, and mystical experience. In this conversation, we dig into what the brain is doing during spiritual practice – and how he studies it, how different practices produce both shared and distinctive neural patterns, and why sexuality and religious experience may be m...

In this AI-assisted conversation, I speak with 18th-century Scottish philosopher David Hume — the great skeptic of the Enlightenment and one of the first thinkers to question the idea of a permanent self. We discuss his early years in Edinburgh, his philosophy of ideas and impressions, his views on morality and motivation, and how his insights anticipate modern neuroscience and Buddhism alike. Voi...

Could today’s AIs already be conscious? Before you say no, let’s look at what “consciousness” really means – and why machines may already qualify. In this episode of What is Mind?, William Gadea looks at: Why definitions of consciousness depend on purpose and context. How Thomas Nagel’s “What is it like to be…” definition breaks down for AIs Why Alan Turing’s famous test no longer satisfies Why “i...

In this episode of What Is Mind? , I speak with Dr. Swayam Bagaria, Assistant Professor of Hindu Studies at Harvard Divinity School. Trained as an anthropologist at Johns Hopkins, Bagaria explores how religion, cognition, and technology intertwine in shaping human experience. We discuss Hinduism’s pluralistic and decentralized nature, how seekers find their spiritual paths, and why Hinduism both f...

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Theodore H. Schwartz, neurosurgeon at Weill Cornell Medicine and author of Gray Matters: A Biography of Brain Surgery. We discuss what it’s like to operate under extreme pressure, the controversial legacy of Dr. William Scoville (the surgeon who operated on H.M. — and on my father), and what modern neuroscience tells us about free will, brain-computer interfaces, a...

I was named after the neurosurgeon who operated on H.M., history’s most famous amnesiac. In this episode, I trace Henry Molaison’s case, the discoveries it unlocked about memory, and a parallel story from my own family that began in the same Hartford hospital. What you’ll learn (without spoilers): How H.M.’s case helped separate short-term vs long-term memory Why declarative and procedural memory...

What if the “Self” you take for granted isn’t what it seems? Neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy suggest that some of our deepest assumptions about who we are might be illusions. In this video, we’ll look at three powerful ways our sense of self misleads us—and why seeing through these illusions can change how we live, think, and connect with others. Along the way, we’ll explore groundbreakin...

Is religion a cultural parasite, a spandrel, an evolutionary adaptation – or evidence of God? In this video, we explore the main scientific and philosophical theories about the origins of religion. RELATED LINKS: Learn more about the creator — https://www.williamgadea.com/ Purchase William Gadea's book here — https://www.amazon.com/Arrow-Power-Poison-William-Gadea/dp/B0FD94LW5G/ref=nosim?tag=willi...

In this episode, I’m joined by futurist and author Richard Yonck. We talk about his new sci-fi novel Mindstock, and how fiction can help us imagine the future of human and machine minds. We also dive into his earlier work on emotions and machines—a topic at the frontier of AI, robotics, and human–computer interaction. LINKS: Buy Richard Yonck's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Mindstock-Novel-Ric...

Is the brain a single, unified system—or a collection of specialized parts working in concert? In this episode, William Gadea explores the case for modularity of mind, from Paul Broca’s 19th-century discovery in a patient named Louis Victor Leborgne, to the insights of modern neuroimaging. What does it mean that speech, memory, face recognition, and even morality may live in different parts of the...

This is a solo episode. Philosopher David Chalmers is the leading advocate of modern dualism. He thinks we should face the fact that consciousness is a hard problem. I summarize and take a critical look at his views. RELATED LINKS: Learn more about the creator — https://www.williamgadea.com/ Purchase William Gadea's book here — https://www.amazon.com/Arrow-Power-Poison-William-Gadea/dp/B0FD94LW5G/...