Conscious

Outline

Conscious (2019) is a short, accessible guide to one of the deepest mysteries in science and philosophy: why we have inner experience at all. Annaka Harris examines questions such as whether consciousness is necessary for complex behaviour, whether free will is an illusion, and whether consciousness might extend beyond brains. The book invites readers to question their intuitions about the mind and the nature of experience.

• The book asks why we have inner experience at all, which it presents as one of the deepest mysteries in science and philosophy.
• Annaka Harris asks whether consciousness is actually necessary for complex behaviour, or whether such behaviour can happen without it.
• She examines whether free will is an illusion and what that would mean for how we see ourselves.
• The book raises the possibility that consciousness might extend beyond brains.
• Rather than handing over final answers, it invites readers to question their own intuitions about the mind and the nature of experience.

Annaka Harris is an American author whose work explores neuroscience, philosophy of mind, and the nature of consciousness. She has worked as an editor and consultant for science writers and wrote the children’s book I Wonder. Her writing is known for making complex questions about the mind clear and approachable.