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Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers are on a contractual collision course
Colts Risk Failed Talks With Star’s $42M Contract Year
After having one of the best years in the league as a premium RB, the Indianapolis Colts could face a Jonathan Taylor trade in the next few months.
Modern Warfare 4's DMZ Started As A Very Different Idea
Infinity Ward explains how DMZ evolved through years of iteration, beta feedback, and lessons from extraction shooters.
007 First Light Dev IO Interactive Says It's Now Sold 3 Million Copies, Tracking 'Well Above Our Forecasts at This Point'
Developer IO Interactive is celebrating after 007 First Light sold 3 million copies in less than two weeks.
How to keep ticks out of your yard
Skip the essential oils and try expert-recommended tick prevention methods to make your yard less attractive to ticks.
Manchester City believe Barcelona defensive target will renew contract
Even though their absolute priority is the signing of a new centre-forward, FC Barcelona remain on the lookout to strengthen the centre-back position.For a while, Alessandro Bastoni appeared to be the...
Oakland Athletics Announces Multi-Year Partnership with Adidas and BSN Sports
ROCHESTER, Mich. – Oakland University Athletics has officially signed a multi-year contract with adidas, with BSN SPORTS positioned as the exclusive supplier of uniforms, apparel, footwear, accessories, and equipment for all 18 Golden Grizzly varsity programs through the assistance of College Sports Solutions.
Uber's AI training gig work offers good pay but lacks stability
Uber AI Solutions pays up to $150 an hour, contractors said. The AI training work doesn't involve onboarding and hours can vary from week to week.
Mancini’s renewal not at risk, defender set for extended stay
In recent days, there has been talk of Inter’s strong interest in Gianluca Mancini, one of the players being monitored by the Nerazzurri to strengthen their defense. The Roma center-back’s contrac...
How The Mixed Analyst Calls Are Reframing The Cardinal Health (CAH) Investment Story
Cardinal Health is back in focus as fresh Street research reshapes the price target conversation, with several firms trimming their targets while one raises its view and another starts coverage on a bullish footing. Those mixed calls reflect a split between analysts who see room for upside if execution holds and others who are more cautious about how much to pay for the stock right now. As you read on, you will see how to track these shifting views and what they might mean for your own...
Sacramento County residents can track local health trends in real time. Here’s how
County officials said the new portal will make public health information easier to access and explore.
Science in action: A look inside the health lab tracking World Cup disease risks
Health professionals gathered at Georgetown University are tracking global health data to help prevent deadly diseases from spreading during the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
Science in action: A look inside the health lab tracking World Cup disease risks
Health professionals gathered at Georgetown University are tracking global health data to help prevent deadly diseases from spreading during the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
Chicago Bears sign draft picks Dillon Thieneman and Logan Jones
The Chicago Bears have two more draft picks under contract, so they have one more to go.
Projecting contract extension for Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr
What will Joey Porter’s contract extension with the Steelers look like?
The Fitbit Air is great, but Google's AI is too nice to be your "coach"
The Air succeeds as a minimalist, reliable fitness tracker, but Google's AI Health Coach feels unnecessary.
Does Derick Hall's extension create urgency with Devon Witherspoon?
Does Derick Hall's contract extension with the Seattle Seahawks create urgency with Devon Witherspoon?
A.J. Brown to Patriots, Drake London extension among headlines from OTAs this week that we're tracking for fantasy football
Bayern offer to extend Arijon Ibrahimovic's contract
Arijon Ibrahimovic is returning to FC Bayern Munich after his year-long loan spell at recently relegated 1.FC Heidenheim.According to Sky Germany, Bayern are satisfied with Ibrahimovic's development a...
VIEW Strong May jobs number sends yields, rate expectations higher
The U.S. economy posted another month of strong employment gains in May, confirming that the labor market was gaining traction after stumbling last year and sending short-term interest rates higher on Friday morning in the face of inflation stemming from the war with Iran.
Oura Ring 5: Upgraded Smart Ring Takes Your Health, Fitness to the Next Level
Oura announced the release of the Oura Ring 5 on June 4. The new smart ring is smaller and has upgraded features to improve how you track your health and fitness. Here's what you need to know about cost, how it works, and more.
Roma interested in Brahim Diaz, but deal appears difficult
The Champions League is an important showcase for attracting players from big clubs to join Roma. Gian Piero Gasperini’s team, which will return to Europe’s top club after seven years, has initiat...
Grosso poised for Fiorentina coach's job after leaving Sassuolo
Fabio Grosso has resigned as coach of Sassuolo, the Serie A club announced on Friday with reports he is now set to join Fiorentina. "Sassuolo have reached an agreement to terminate the contracts of first-team coach Fabio Grosso and his staff," the Serie A club said.
West Ham’s Mohamadou Kanté attracts Ligue 1 interest
Mohamadou Kanté (20) could leave West Ham United this summer and a return to his native France is an option, as per a report from The Athletic. Kanté joined West Ham from Paris FC back in 2024. La...
Official | Allan Saint-Maximin leaves RC Lens
Allan Saint-Maximin’s (29) exit from RC Lens has been confirmed. The Frenchman is expected to make a move to the MLS.Having joined Lens last February following the termination of his contract with M...
Akheem Mesidor contract details: Chargers lock up top draft pick
The Los Angeles Chargers have locked up their top draft selection.
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 SUPER is 'back on track', RTX 5060 12GB reportedly planned
NVIDIA RTX 50 SUPER refresh reportedly returns to active plans MEGAsizeGPU says RTX 5070 SUPER and RTX 5080 SUPER specs remain unchanged. According to
Actors\' union approves 4-year contract with studios and streamers
Television and movie actors have voted to ratify a four-year contract with studios and streaming services. This comes after union leaders negotiated protections against synthetic actors created by artificial intelligence.
L.A. Times insider: Austin Reaves wants max deal from Lakers
According to a Los Angeles Times insider, the Lakers may have no choice but to give Austin Reaves a max contract this summer if they want to keep him.
Packers Give Christian Watson Massive Contract Extension
The Green Bay Packers reshuffled their wide receiver room this offseason, but Christian Watson isn't going anywhere. Is that good?
Pennsylvania health officials tracking red meat allergy caused by lone star tick
Lars Nootbaar’s Return Gives Cardinals Something Stats Can’t Track
We now know that the St. Louis Cardinals will finally have Lars Nootbaar back in the Major League lineup as he’s being activated for the homestand versus the Cincinnati Reds starting Friday night. There’s been a lot of discussion about what that will mean for the roster moving forward, but I’d like to focus on […]
TxDOT Hosting Event for Small Businesses, July 20th
Texas Border Business PHARR, Texas – The TxDOT Pharr District, which oversees the construction and maintenance of state highways in the eight southernmost counties of Texas, is hosting an event on July 20 for small businesses interested in securing state highway construction contracts. The Pharr event labeled BOSS, for big opportunities start small, gives attendees the opportunity to connect with local TxDOT engineers, […]
4 things to know about Obama's new presidential museum
Here’s a closer look at the top attractions of the campus that is expected to draw as many as 1 million visitors annually.
Melinda French Gates donates $215 million to improve women's health worldwide
Philanthropist Melinda French Gates will expand her giving to improve women’s health globally, pledging another $215 million to support contraceptive access
Rams reportedly rework Myles Garrett contract that pays 2-time DPOY $204 million over 5 years
Ian Rapoport clarifies how Rams reworked Myles Garrett's contract
Ian Rapoport refuted an earlier report that Myles Garrett is getting a new deal from the Rams, clarifying that LA only reworked his current contract.
Christian Watson's new $110.5 million deal shows how much Packers believe in his ceiling
The Packers just gave Christian Watson a huge contract, and here's why.
Fitbit Air Can Turn Into a Watch and the Trick is Super Easy
When we talk about devices like the new Fitbit Air having their momentt, we can't do so without mentioning the fact that it doesn't have a screen. This is a fitness and health tracker that is...
Newcastle Announce Matt Targett News After 2025-26 Season
Newcastle United confirmed on Tuesday that defender Matt Targett will leave the club following the expiry of his contract at the end of June. The full-back was named on the club’s retained list for summer 2026, with Newcastle announcing that four more senior players will depart after Kieran Trippier and Emil Krafth had already been […]
Video consumption and entertainment spending increased in 2025
TiVo has released its Q4 2025 “Video Trends Report,” finding that consumer video engagement reached ... Read More
Music Producer’s Widow’s Drops Royalties Suit vs Amaru Entertainment
The widow of a musician and producer who worked with Tupac Shakur has dropped her lawsuit against a company formed by the late mother of the slain rapper in which the plaintiff alleged she was wrongfully denied royalty payments. Capucine Jackson, the widow of Johnny Lee Jackson, sought compensatory damages in her breach-of-contract action against […]
Producer’s Widow’s Drops Royalties Suit vs Amaru Entertainment
The widow of a musician and producer who worked with Tupac Shakur has dropped her lawsuit against a company formed by the late mother of the slain rapper in which the plaintiff alleged she was wrongfully denied royalty payments. Capucine Jackson, the widow of Johnny Lee Jackson, sought compensatory damages in her breach-of-contract action against […]
Check out Grêmio players with contracts nearing expiry
The break in the sports calendar for the World Cup will give Grêmio’s board valuable time to get things in order.The main focus behind the scenes is defining the future of key players in Luís Cast...
Tracking malaria in Central America | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Paulo Manrique, PhD ’26, is making novel discoveries about the transmission of malaria in Central America, helping the region’s health ministries develop molecular surveillance capacity to monitor and combat the disease.
Cam Heyward is still going strong as he closes in on the Steelers' record for longevity
If Cam Heyward keeps getting new contracts or years added to his deal, he will creep closer to a Steelers record not many players could ever sniff. Heyward’s...
Chris Olave’s potential contract extension just got more expensive
Not good news for the Saints, great news for Olave
WA doctors were sent for mental health help. It hurt their careers
Two former UW Medicine residents allege in a recent lawsuit that a physicians health program misdiagnosed them and threw their careers off track.
Home Is Where Your Politics Are
It’s apparently not the case that Winston Churchill once said anyone not a liberal at 20 lacked compassion, while anyone not a conservative at 30 lacked intelligence. Whoever made the observation (it may trace to...
48 Hours With the Oura Ring 5: The New Gold Standard
I knew the minute I put it on my finger that the sleek new ring was going to be a game changer. And that's before any of the health tracking.
Samsung Health App Evolves With AI-Powered Proactive Intelligence To Help Users Stay Ahead of Their Health
New update transforms the user experience from passive tracking to proactive guidance with a suite of personalized, intuitive daily insights
Federal Law Enforcement: DHS Could Improve Data Collection and Assessment of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Programs
Law enforcement officers at the Department of Homeland Security face stressors that can adversely affect their mental health and suicide risk. During...
Tech ‘got spanked’ in this week’s primaries. It could be a preview of more to come.
Tech is poised to suffer more electoral defeats this summer in New York, Florida and elsewhere, where industry detractors are frontrunners in their upcoming primaries.
Would Hackney be an Everton fit?
Middlesbrough fan Tom Green has been speaking to BBC Radio Merseyside's Total Sport show about the Toffees' links with midfielder Hayden Hackney. Hackney is said to have a number of suitors but reports this week have said Everton are one of them. Supporter Green, from The Boro Breakdown podcast, says he would expect a fee of between £15-20m for 23-year-old Hackney, who is out of contract in June of 2027.
Three studies used by RFK Jr and allies to justify controversial vaccine policies changes facing new scrutiny
Scientists praise moves to investigate, retract or remove controversial studies. The authors stand by their work
Liverpool asking for trouble with crazy Ibrahima Konate plan
Liverpool are just asking for trouble with their plan after Ibrahima Konate agreed to join Real Madrid.Ibrahima Konate will leave Liverpool this summer. His contract expires and there's no agreement o...
Melinda French Gates donates $215 million to improve women's health worldwide
Melinda French Gates is expanding her efforts to improve women's health worldwide, pledging $215 million for contraceptive access and maternal care, as well as initiatives for middle-age women
Wellness tracking apps are making people stressed out, hurting health
Americans are spending $100 billion on wellness apps and health trackers — but the rise in self-data may end up just stressing people out.
Everwell Health highlights science-backed ingredients for functional beverages at BevNET Live 2026
Everwell Health will showcase its “Ingredients for Life” portfolio at BevNET Live in New York City from June 10–11
The Politics Of Protecting The Florida Reef
This endangered marine environment built around the Florida Tract Reef continues to suffer amid partisan gridlock and differing views on the best way to protect it.
What are the Ebola vaccines under research, and when will they be ready?
At least three vaccines are being funded, research being fast-tracked as the outbreak spreads faster than the response.
Scientists discover a quantum effect that could eliminate batteries
Researchers have discovered how microscopic imperfections and atomic vibrations can be used to control a powerful quantum effect in an advanced material. The effect can turn alternating electrical signals from the environment directly into the kind of current electronic devices need, without traditional components. As temperature changes, the signal can even flip direction, giving scientists a new way to tune device performance.
Samsung Introduces Next-Gen Galaxy Watch Features for AI-Powered Everyday Health Companion
New update transforms the user experience from passive tracking to proactive guidance with a suite of personalised, intuitive daily insights
Samsung Introduces Next-Gen Galaxy Watch Features for AI-Powered Everyday Health Companion
New update transforms the user experience from passive tracking to proactive guidance with a suite of personalised, intuitive daily insights
Samsung Introduces Next-Gen Galaxy Watch Features for AI-Powered Everyday Health Companion
New update transforms the user experience from passive tracking to proactive guidance with a suite of personalized, intuitive daily insights
Samsung Introduces Next-Gen Galaxy Watch Features for AI-Powered Everyday Health Companion
New update transforms the user experience from passive tracking to proactive guidance with a suite of personalized, intuitive daily insights
Apple to Launch New Siri in September With Help of Google, Nvidia
Apple is currently on track to launch its overhauled Siri in September, to run in part on Google’s cloud computing servers using Nvidia chips, according to people familiar with the matter. While Apple will try to run as much as possible of the new Siri on devices such as iPhones, certain parts will require more compute power and will run on Google Cloud, as The Information has previously
Trent Williams thinks 2027 season will "probably" be his last
Trent Williams signed a two-year, $50 million contract this offseason, with $37 million fully guaranteed.
Ohio Medicaid fraud discussed in House hearing
During the hearing, Republicans repeatedly blamed Medicaid fraud in Ohio on immigrants, specifically from Somalia and Bhutan, while Democrats accused Republicans of trying to score political points on immigration to distract from greater corruption in the Trump administration.
Ohio Medicaid fraud discussed in House hearing
During the hearing, Republicans repeatedly blamed Medicaid fraud in Ohio on immigrants, specifically from Somalia and Bhutan, while Democrats accused Republicans of trying to score political points on immigration to distract from greater corruption in the Trump administration.
Health department investigates tuberculosis case at Lloyd Memorial High School
The Northern Kentucky Health Department is investigating a case of active tuberculosis linked to a student at Lloyd Memorial High School, with contact tracing underway for those who had prolonged exposure.
How loneliness became major public health issue
U.K., U.S. experts trace rise in awareness through research, political involvement, pandemic
GOP lawmakers call homophobic X post from colleague’s account ‘disgusting’
Republican lawmakers blasted a homophobic post that appeared on GOP Rep. Andy Ogles’ X account on Tuesday, saying it was “gross,” “disgusting,” a distraction and had no place in their party.
Trump compares White House UFC cage to Eiffel Tower, says 'maybe we’ll never ever take it down'
“You know, we’re building something in front of the White House that’s quite attractive to a lot of people,” Trump said in a video posted on Tuesday.
Drake London’s contract ranks among highest Atlanta sports salaries
Here’s how Falcons wide receiver Drake London’s contract extension — four years for $141 million — compares to the highest annual salaries in Atlanta sports history.
Wisconsin approves contract extensions after 2026 spring sports seasons
The UW Athletic Board has signed off on the customary one-year contract extensions for the Wisconsin Badgers' spring sports coaches.
Micah Parsons says he has 4 months left in ACL recovery; Packers pass rusher on track for October return
Taylor Swift's 'Toy Story 5' song is one of her savviest business moves yet
Taylor Swift is tying her commercial and promotional power to "Toy Story 5" with an original song for the film's soundtrack. It's a smart business move.
Watch: Shaheen dodges reporter's Platner questions as aide creates donut distraction
Stefany Shaheen's campaign staffer shoved a pastry into a reporter's camera as the candidate ignored questions about Graham Platner's Senate bid.
Newcastle Announce Fabian Schar News After 2025-26 Season
Newcastle United have secured the future of veteran defender Fabian Schar just before his contract ended on July 1. The Mapies announced on Tuesday that the Swiss international has signed a new one-year contract through the end of the 2026-27 season, keeping him in tow under manager Eddie Howe for a ninth campaign. Schar joined […]
Kevin Magnussen Is Finally Coming to NASCAR
After years competing at the highest levels of motorsports, former Formula 1 driver Kevin Magnussen is finally getting his shot in NASCAR. The Danish racing veteran will make his Cup Series debut with Trackhouse Racing's Project 91 program at San…
NFL insider hints at Falcons’ next big contract extension
After Drake London's megadeal Bijan Robinson may be next in line
Striker Cooke signs new Torquay United contract
Torquay United agree a new contract with striker Cody Cooke.
Flashback: How the Obama Era Revealed Deep Political Divisions in America
Now available on YouTube, part one of FRONTLINE’s archival series ‘Divided States of America’ traces the rise of the partisanship and gridlock that continue to define U.S. politics today.
Elections to top science bodies test Croatia’s gender equality in research
Croatia’s track-record on gender equality in science has been both questioned and lauded in recent months, following both bad and good news on the topic. On the one hand, a senior awards committee was announced without a single woman researcher included. On the other, the national science academy welcomed its first cohort of fellows with more women than men.Members of the committee, which gives national awards recognising scientific achievement, are proposed by the ministry of science and endorsed by the parliament. The current line-up does include a woman, but she is culture minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek rather than a researcher. Even then, she didn’t make it into the photograph released to announce the appointments on April 16. “The image speaks a thousand words,” says Tanja Rudež, a science journalist for Jutarnji List newspaper. “I am surprised that none of these men, all well-known scientists, saw a problem with the fact that there was not a single successful female scientist on the committee,” she told Science|Business.Ivan Đikić, a prominent Croatian biochemist based at Goethe University Medical School, commented on LinkedIn that the news illustrated a “sad truth” about the state of science in Croatia.“It [. . .] reveals a system where women, despite contributing a substantial share of high-quality, internationally competitive science, are systematically excluded from the very processes that determine recognition and influence,” he wrote. Some 60% of researchers in Croatia are women, according to the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, and they perform well in international competitions. For example, of the 12 European Research Council (ERC) grants awarded to Croatian researchers, seven went to women.“So how is it possible that decision-making bodies are still dominated by men over 60, while not a single female ERC laureate is involved in the selection process?” asked Đikić. “This is not a marginal oversight; it is a structural failure.” The ministry of science did not reply to a request for comment. The awards committee is not unusual. For example, a scientific advisory body announced by the ministry of demographics in April comprises 35 men and five women. The board of the Croatian Science Foundation, newly appointed by the parliament, is a little better, with five men and two women, but still unequal. “This is especially significant because such bodies do not merely distribute prestige. They shape research priorities, funding allocation and long-term scientific development,” Marija Lugarić, chair of the parliament’s committee on gender equality, told Science|Business. “Representation here matters not only symbolically, but materially.”Referring to the awards committee and the board of the science foundation, Lugarić says that while both bodies were appointed by parliament, neither met the minimum 40% gender balance threshold that Croatian law and EU guidelines expressly recommend for public bodies.Đikić wants to see EU institutions put pressure on the government to ensure basic standards of fairness, transparency and democratic governance in science policy are met. “Meaningful change will not come without pressure,” he wrote. “It must intensify both within Croatia and at the level of European institutions. Anything less undermines the credibility of Europe’s commitment to excellence and inclusion in science.”Rudež also underlined the importance of talking and writing about this topic, “because public opinion in Croatia does influence changes in the status and visibility of women in science.”The European Commission has not yet responded to a request for comment.Good news from the academyA more positive story came from the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts on 21 May, with the announcement of seven new women fellows and five men. This is the first time in the academy’s 165-year history that women have outnumbered men in a new intake.One of the new fellows, two-time ERC grantee Iva Tolić, credits the academy leadership with trying to be more modern and inclusive, representing the whole community better. “The academy is really aware that so far, before this election, there were very few women,” she told Science|Business. “So, they are actively trying to make this more equal.”Related articlesExplained: How the MSCA is close to achieving gender balanceCall for EU to leverage academic freedom in global talent raceRudež is more cautious, noting that despite the academy’s “breakthrough this year [. . .] it is still a predominantly male institution, with only 18% women.”This reflects a wider imbalance in Croatia’s research landscape. “The key levers of power in science are still in the hands of men,” she went on. “For example, all 14 rectors of private and public universities are men.”Similarly, Lugarić says a structural glass ceiling still exists in Croatian science, which is “most visible precisely where power is exercised.”She cites data from the Commission’s She Figures 2024 report, which shows that Croatia ranks second in the EU for gender equality in research and innovation overall, with an equality index of 79.6 out of 100. It is in the top five for women’s career advancement, participation in research; representation across all research sectors and for scientific publications.In stark contrast, it ranks second to last when it comes to women in decision-making positions in science. “This is not a coincidence,” Lugarić says. “It is a structural pattern.”Informal barriersThe persistent under-representation of women in the highest structures of Croatia’s academies, boards, award committees and leadership positions is not down to formal barriers, Lugarić says, but arises from more subtle obstacles such as “informal networks, persistent expectations regarding traditional gender roles and the unequal distribution of care responsibilities.”Tolić would like to see more support for young women in terms of affordable housing and child support, and higher salaries. Currently, she says, salaries in science stay low for the first 10-15 years, while housing and spaces in kindergarten are limited and expensive. “You have to work a lot, you get very little money, so it’s not great to have a family in this situation,” she says.But despite the challenges, Tolić is optimistic, saying that gender equality in research in Croatia is “definitely improving and going in the right direction.” The situation is particularly promising in biology, she adds, where most full professors, heads of department and deans of faculties are women. Lugarić, too, see the glass ceiling “very slowly, cracking,” and cites the academy election as an example that structural change is possible. Yet the situation in the national awards committee is a “stark reminder that without a conscious, systemic commitment to gender balance, progress will remain slow and uneven.”
The cult of objectivity has broken consciousness science
With 22 competing theories and no consensus in sight, the science of consciousness is lost. In this exclusive IAI interview, Berkeley psychedelics researcher and bestselling author of a new book on consciousness Michael Pollan insists that even though consciousness lies beyond traditional forms of scientific investigation, we should resist becoming dualists who see it as something radically different from ordinary stuff in the world. Instead, he makes the case for reimagining science itself: it must stop reaching for objective descriptions of physical reality, and instead embrace subjectivity as the indispensable core of all inquiry. Alasdair Craig: How did your experiences with psychedelics get you interested in consciousness?Michael Pollan: One of the things that happens on psychedelics is that they foreground consciousness. What formerly seemed perfectly transparent and ever present—and yet, non-existent, as water is to fish—suddenly you see it. The metaphor I use in the book is that psychedelics sponge the windscreen. Suddenly you realize: wow, there’s a windscreen, there is this phenomenon that’s mediating my relationship to reality. This is not an unusual realization on psychedelics. I think a lot of people are called to think about consciousness after psychedelic experiences. So that was the proximate inspiration for A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness (2026).And then there was a more specific way in which psychedelics influence the book. That was a particular experience I had on psilocybin. I had the sensation that the plants in my garden were conscious and returning my gaze, with their own point of view and agency, and I got curious as to how to evaluate an insight like that. I mean, what’s the truth quotient of insights you have on psychedelics? And I was reading William James—who, of course, wrote beautifully about mystical experience—and he said, we can’t judge the metaphysics here, but we should pay attention to two criteria: (1) How useful is it to think this is true? He was a pragmatist, of course. And (2) can we subject it to other ways of knowing to validate it? Because maybe we should treat these insights as hypotheses. And that’s kind of how I approach psychedelics, as a great generator of hypotheses, but they need to be tested against other ways of knowing. And so that led me down this long path exploring the science of plant intelligence and plant sentience.AC: I love your phrase, “smudging the windowpane of conscious experience.” So do you now start to think, actually, even when I’m not on psychedelics, I’m just seeing a screen all the time, which is not reality, but rather is my conscious experience, behind which reality is hidden?MP: Well, you know, not when I’m brushing my teeth and making breakfast! But yes, in meditation, certainly. I mean, one of the things you realize is that my experience happens to be this way now, but it could be another way. And many things can affect it. My morning coffee changes the screen in various ways, sharpens certain things.___The only tool we have to understand consciousness is consciousness.___There’s this wonderful metaphor in Aldous Huxley’s book, The Doors of Perception, where he thinks we channel consciousness, and that what the brain does is edit it, and there’s a reducing valve. And psychedelics open the reducing valve wider. I don’t know that I’m ready to buy into the idea that consciousness exists outside brains, but I do love that metaphor because there are times when you are more conscious than others. I know I’ve switched from window pane to valve, but you know, a camera aperture can open wider or narrower. And I do have a sense of that. I have a sense of when I’m being less conscious, and when I’m being more conscious, by which I mean, you know, more present, taking in more sensory information. So when you start thinking about consciousness as a matter of degree, that changes things also.I think when we scroll on social media, obviously, we’re conscious. But minimally so, because we don’t have to generate our own thoughts. We’re basically taking these little hits from other people and thinking their thoughts.The process of writing this book made me kind of relativize everyday consciousness as just one type, which is exactly what William James said. Normal consciousness is one type, separated by the flimsiest of screens from the other types.AC: If we stick with the metaphor of the smudge on the window that you get when you take psychedelics, it seems like we’re saying that consciousness has become like an object that you’re looking at, right? You’re looking at the smudge and that just is consciousness. But sometimes we’ll talk about consciousness as a state that you’re in, rather than an object you can perceive. You’re either conscious or you’re not conscious. So it’s difficult to really know what sort of thing we’re talking about when we talk about consciousness, right?MP: Yeah. When you say that consciousness is an object, what’s the subject? Consciousness also? The only tool we have to understand consciousness is consciousness. So we’re in a closed loop and when we get a perspective on consciousness, we’re not achieving any distance from it. That’s one of the problems with studying consciousness. Science is predicated on an objective, God’s eye view of things, and you never get that. There’s no such thing. SUGGESTED VIEWING The brain filters consciousness With Àlex Gómez-Marín But, yeah, there is this sense, I think, that consciousness is something you can approach. Certainly, when you’re writing and trying to recreate a conscious experience, it’s a fiction, but you’re standing back from it, and looking at it. But there’s no real subject-object distinction.AC: That’s so interesting, because when philosophers start talking about consciousness, they often talk about what they call “qualia”, which is their word for the felt experience of, say, the color red. And I think that way of speaking often makes us think of the qualia as an object, which you can see out there: the redness of red. But, as you say, we also want to collapse the subject-object distinction when we talk about consciousness. So there’s something strange going on here…MP: Oh, yeah, there are many strange things going on! *AC: Let’s talk about the varieties of consciousness. Apart from perceptions, there are, pains, emotions, thoughts, and so on. What is it that holds all this diversity together so that they all count as instances of consciousness? What is it that they all have in common?MP: Yeah, that’s a really good question. I mean, there is sensory information, right? Which we perceive coming from the world outside ourselves. And then there’s internal information, which is what’s called interoception. And this is very important too. This is where feelings come from—what are sometimes called homeostatic feelings—that are intended to get the brain to keep us in these narrow ranges of temperature and glucose and so on. That’s a very important part of consciousness. And according to some researchers, who I think are probably right, this is where consciousness begins, with these very primal feelings, like hunger and thirst and warmth and itch, and things like that. And then there’s this third thing, which is our thinking about thinking.And what holds all this together is, I think, the sense of self. Consciousness generates a self: it is probably an organizing principle. All this stuff is happening to the self. It’s a construct, I think, but it is very useful. It can connect all these different streams of consciousness to a single being or a place, metaphorically speaking.* AC: The first half of your book is about the science of consciousness. Is consciousness just another thing, like black holes or the origin of life, which we don’t yet understand, but which we should have every hope that science will one day get to the bottom of, or is there something special about consciousness that makes this unlikely?MP: It depends how you define science. As we define science now, it’s going be very difficult. Science since Galileo has had a set of rules or assumptions, which is that the proper remit of science is to deal with the objective, quantifiable, third-person world. And the physical sciences have done amazing work under that set of limitations. Galileo—for tactical reasons, not for philosophical reasons—said science should not deal with the soul, which at the time was what consciousness was considered to be. So what is subjective, what is qualitative, what is first person, we’re going to leave to the church, he said. And this was a good agreement, and it probably kept many scientists from getting burned at the stake. But it leaves science in an awkward spot, now that it wants to venture into that territory of qualities, of first-person experience. And I don’t think it has the proper tools. I think it will have to add to its toolkit in some way, and find a way to bring in phenomenology, or lived experience and introspection, which science is usually dismissive of.The challenge—we alluded to it earlier—is that the only tool you have to study consciousness with is consciousness. And what I mean by that is, the whole scientific enterprise is a manifestation of consciousness. As much as scientists like to flatter themselves with this idea that they attain a godlike perspective on what they study, when it comes to consciousness, there’s no such thing. And it’s fine for all the things you can step outside of and study from that perspective. But two areas it won’t work are consciousness and cosmology.___It could be that we live in this anomaly of not believing nature is conscious. And maybe psychedelics are teaching us something we’ve forgotten.___With cosmology, too, you have to study the universe from inside the universe. It’s not that cosmologists haven’t made progress. We know a lot about the age of the universe and expansion and things like that. But we can’t penetrate what happened before the Big Bang. We just don’t have the tools because we can’t stand outside.The fact that there are 22 full-scale theories of consciousness tells you all you need to know: we’re kind of lost. And I was surprised to find that we are more lost than I thought we were when I started this. I thought that there’d be leading theories, or that we had experiments that we could conduct that would nail some of this down. And the fact is, we don’t.So, I don’t know if science can solve it. But, of course, we can change the rules of science. A really influential book for me was a book called The Blind Spot, by two physicists, Marcello Gleiser and Adam Frank, and a philosopher, Evan Thompson. It’s a reminder that science is a social practice. It’s organized in a certain way and it can be organized in a different way. But it has this huge blind spot at the center of it, which is its failure to recognize that it is a form of consciousness itself, and it doesn’t have a good way of taking account of lived experience.AC: On the one hand, I think you want to resist traditional dualism, which would say that consciousness is something magical, something supernatural, right? But on the other hand, you’re accepting that there is this division in reality between the stuff that you can investigate objectively and measure, and so on—the stuff that science has been good at finding out about—and consciousness, which, for some reason, you can’t objectively measure. Some would take this to suggest that the dualism is actually right. Is there a way of reconciling these two strands of your thinking?MP: To call it magical is full of value judgement. I mean, you could just say immaterial. The interesting thing is, I think, that intuitively we’re all dualists. And I don’t know whether that’s because we’re children of Descartes and other cultures are less dualist than we are. Or it may be because that’s how consciousness feels. It feels different than the body. It feels separate from the body. But I don’t think we should trust that intuition.AC: So let’s think about ways that science might be changed to get at consciousness. I suppose the starting point would be the way that you begin the second half of your book. You have this nice line from William James, where he says, “We now begin our study of the mind from within.” Could you give us some sense of the ways of studying the mind from within? What does this involve?MP: I don’t know what that science looks like. But one of the points I’m making is that it depends on the humanities. I found that I learned as much, if not more, about consciousness, from reading novels and poetry. There is a sense of the fullness and complexity of consciousness that you don’t get in any scientific account. I interviewed this stream-of-consciousness writer and I approached her as an expert on consciousness, and she is. So I think that dialogue is really important.I’m reading Ben Lerner’s new novel, Transcription. Just read the first page of this novel: it’s a man falling asleep on a train, going to conduct an interview, and there is the experience of being in the train, facing backwards, there’s the view outside, but there’s a reflection of himself through which he’s seeing outside. There’s the memory of dropping his kids off at school. All this is going on in one moment of consciousness. Scientists aren’t going anywhere near that. But I think it’s useful for them to think about. That’s where we’re trying to go: like, how does such a layered experience happen? You know, it also makes you wonder, could a computer ever do this? And it gives you some doubt.*AC: Before we get to computers, perhaps we could talk briefly about plants. How did you come to feel that they are sentient?MP: Well, it was a psychedelic experience, and it’s not unusual on psychedelics. In fact, there’ve been studies about how people become animists during psychedelic experience. Their belief in animism arises after a single psychedelic experience.You know, most scientists would say this is all a myth. But we have only 400 years of the age of enlightenment and science. Before that, we were animists, and if you go around the world, most indigenous cultures are still animists, and children are animists, by and large, until they go to school. So it could be that we live in this anomaly of not believing nature is conscious. And maybe psychedelics are teaching us something we’ve forgotten.As I said, I wanted to test this idea, and see whether there was conventional scientific evidence for it. And there’s fascinating work going on in a field that calls itself—in a rather cheeky way—plant neurobiology. These are people who fully realize there are no neurons in plants, but they’re trolling conventional botanists! And they’re doing experiments that are demonstrating that plants can learn and remember, which is kind of amazing: how do you store a memory without neurons? They’re finding plants that can solve problems, that can hear and see. In fact, they have 20 senses to our five or six. For example, a bean plant looking for something to twine, and given a pole within eight inches or so of it, knows where that pole is and will aim its spiraling reach at that pole. What is that about? Is it bouncing signals off of it?One of the spookiest things is the fact that the same anesthetics that put us out put plants out. You might think that plants are already out, but they’re not. They’re just slow. If you take a plant with a fast behavior, like a Venus flytrap, and give it an anesthetic, it will stop reacting. So you have to ask yourself, what is lost when the plant is anaesthetized? Some state of alertness, of awareness, of its environment, of reactivity. I’m not prepared to call that consciousness, but maybe it’s sentience—which is a simpler form of consciousness, and involves the ability to sense what’s going on in your environment and assess what’s good and bad for you and act appropriately. That may be a universal quality of life.AC: Let’s turn from plants to AI. You point out that LLMs are trained on the internet rather than direct interactions with reality. You put this really nicely when you say the internet is not the world so much as a shadow cast by the world. So LLMs are living in this kind of shadow world, or in Plato’s cave, as you put it. What’s the significance of this for AI consciousness and moral consideration? And, to recall the beginning of our conversation, if we’re stuck behind a veil or screen of consciousness, are we also stuck in a kind of shadow world?MP: I don’t think they’re the same shadow worlds because our world includes nature and other people. And even if it’s mediated in some ways... There is a reality out there, and we are in relation to it, through consciousness. There’s friction with it. What’s missing from the LLMs is that friction with the real world. There’s more to the world than human representation, which is what they’re dealing with. And that means that so far, AI is a cultural technology for combining thoughts we’ve already had. SUGGESTED VIEWING Cracking the code for thought With Roger Penrose, Sabrina Gonzalez Pasterski, Max Tegmark, Güneş Taylor Genuine creativity is more than collage. A lot of what AI does now is tantamount to collage, putting this with that and you know, that’s part of art, certainly. But there are also genuinely new ideas that come into the world that don’t come in through manipulating the representations we already have. So it remains to be seen whether AIs can be truly creative in that more radical sense.But my arguments against AI becoming conscious have to do with the fact that the idea of AI consciousness is based on this faulty metaphor that the brain is a computer. There are dimensions in which the brain is like a computer—it certainly does its share of computation. But computers have this sharp distinction between hardware and software, and brains don’t. In a brain, hardware and software are identical. Every memory is a physical change to the brain. Brains are not interchangeable in the way computers are. So this idea that you could take the consciousness out and somehow run it on another substrate, a silicon substrate, seems foolhardy.Anyway, it’s a more extended argument, and I may be wrong. And when we move to computers that aren’t based on silicon—neuromorphic computers and things like that—all bets may be off.AC: Regarding your point about LLMs being stuck in the world of our representations—the internet or whatever—and not being able to interact with reality, are these representations, the world of the internet, themselves part of reality? We’ve created the internet, but it’s still a real thing that exists. And so while the LLMs may be trapped within that part of reality, they’re nevertheless within reality and interacting with it and so on. So it’s not obvious that there’s a barrier there to them becoming conscious and being creative.MP: Yeah, I mean, if our consciousness is built out of human culture, which is what we’re talking about with all those representations. But I tend to think consciousness comes a bit more out of nature and friction with the natural world, but...AC: So there’s a fundamental divide between the natural world and human artefacts?MP: And we lose track of that, and especially people in this computer world. You know, the people who are creating these AI systems, my guess is they’ve been into video games since the age of three, and they didn’t go outside a lot. And their own contact with nature is somewhat limited. I could be wrong, it’d be a very interesting thing to ask, all the wizards of AI, whether they like to go fishing and hiking and do things like that. Or were they on computers from a very early age? I interviewed Blake Lemoine, the Google engineer who came to believe that LaMDA, the Google LLM out at the time, was conscious and deserved personhood. It was very clear that he didn’t see a distinction between this bubble in which he lived and the real world. And I think we’ve all been distanced from the natural world, and this is taking us even further away. But it’s still there, you know, and we still have bodies, and we’re still mortal, and we don’t live in a simulation.AC: I think that’s a great place to finish. Michael Pollan, thank you very much!
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