Studying the Mind from the Inside Out

The objective study of consciousness is relentlessly difficult given its inherently subjective nature. It's difficult, if not impossible, to conduct controlled experiments and studies about how people experience things, since no third-person interpretation can meaningfully decipher the what-it's-likeness of subjective experience. This is why neuroscientists and philosophers have to work piecemeal, carefully and slowly filling in the pieces of the mind puzzle from the scattered data on brain injuries.

There is an alternative, however: injure your own brain with, say, a stroke, and if you're not completely incapacitated in the process, carefully document the stages of the progress of this condition. This is exactly what happened to neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor, and what she came to discover about how the mind works, and some of the differences between the right and left hemispheres of the brain, is truly fascinating. As you'll see in this presentation, she is also a very passionate speaker, with a powerful message.

Would you be that committed to your profession? :)

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