Perspectives on the Self:
Conversations on Identity & Consciousness

"Who am I?" This question lies at the heart of our deeply rooted need to understand our experience of consciousness known as the Self. This six-part series brings together experts from the sciences and the humanities for interdisciplinary conversations on the evolving meaning of the Self.

December 7, 2010 | NYAS
To Be or Not To Be: The Self as Illusion
Moderated by Krista Tippett, creator and host of public radio's Being.

Philosophers Thomas Metzinger and Evan Thompson join cardiologist and expert on near-death experiences Pim van Lommel to shed light on whether our conscious experience of a unified Self is reality or illusion.
Webcast Transcript

Near-death experiences by Pim van Lommel

February 23, 2011 | NYAS
Quid Pro Quo: The Ecology of The Self
Moderated by Steve Paulson, producer of To the Best of Our Knowledge.

Philosopher and neurobiologist Owen Flanagan and psychologists Roy Baumeister and Paul Bloom examine current research on the interaction between the Self and others and consider the roots of empathy and morality.
Webcast Transcript

What do you think you are? by Christina Starmans and Paul Bloom
Self and identity: a brief overview by Roy Baumeister

March 23, 2011 | NYAS
The Pursuit of Immortality: From the Ego to the Soul
Moderated by Lisa Miller, Newsweek.

Are we immortal? Do our souls exist beyond our bodies? These questions and others are addressed from a cultural, historical, and scientific perspective by biologist Kenneth Miller and theologians John Haught and Nancey Murphy.
Webcast Transcript

Science, self, and immortality by John F. Haught
Immortality versus resurrection in the Christian tradition by Nancey Murphy

April 28, 2011 | NYAS
A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Linking Belief to Behavior
Moderated by Esther Sternberg, National Institute of Mental Health.

Philosopher Simon Critchley, cognitive scientist Shaun Gallagher, and physicist V. V. Raman survey how the Self is shaped by interactions with the environment, how free will, responsibility, and other traits emerge.
Webcast Transcript

A self-fulfilling prophecy: linking belief to behavior by Esther Sternberg
The self in the Cartesian brain by Shaun Gallagher
Free will and determinism in relation to the self by V. V. Raman

May 12, 2011 | NYAS
Me, Myself, and I: The Rise of the Modern Self
Moderated by Robert Hanna, University of Colorado.

Historians Gerald Izenberg and Jerrold Seigel, philosopher Raymond Martin, and sociologist Norbert Wiley trace the evolution of the meaning of Self and consider how these notions match what we know from human experience and research.
Webcast Transcript

What is the self? by Robert Hanna
The modern notion of self by Gerald Izenberg
The American self and the long march to legal equality by Norbert Wiley

May 24, 2011 | NYAS
Who Am I?: Beyond 'I Think, Therefore I Am'
Moderated by Alex Voorhoeve, London School of Economics.

Can we ever truly answer the question, "Who am I?" Philosopher Elie During, cognitive scientist David Jopling, social psychologist Timothy Wilson, and ethicist Frances Kamm examine the difficulty of achieving self-knowledge.
Webcast Transcript

Self-knowledge and the practice of ethics by Elie During
"Much ado to know myself" by David Jopling
Understanding, justifying, and finding oneself by Frances M. Kamm