Being You, by Anil Seth

How do self-awareness and consciousness arise from the meat computers in our heads? This is the so-called “hard problem”, which has long been considered intractable. Anil Seth argues that empirical methodology is chipping away at the foundations of the hard problem, and that Psychology is beginning to make real progress towards answers.

He starts by by examining how modern magnetoencephalograpy can yield an operationalised and quantifiable metric of brain activity which appears to accompany conscious experience, and continues to argue that perceptual inferences driven by Baysian logic may be identical to, and responsible for, consciousness. If true, this would mean that animals are conscious, and that AIs aren’t.

This book was published in 2021 and created quite an impact. It contains some very advanced thinking about the science of consciousness, and it is the first time anyone has attempted to make these ideas accessible for a popular audience. It is very readable and not too long, but the ideas it articulates are mind-bending, and worth reading slowly and more than once!

Behave, by Robert Sapolsky.

I read this book during lockdown, and it is now my number one recommendation for A-level students who are interested in Psychology.

Robert Sapolsky has spent a lifetime studying the biology of human behaviour, and this book explains the multiple overlapping explanations for our actions, starting with nervous impulses in the brain. He covers childhood, cultural, and evolutionary influences, and explains the interactions between them.

Sapolsky has an astonishing depth and breadth of knowledge, which shines through his writing. He also illustrates his ideas with very accessible personal and political stories, which make the book very readable. One really impressive thing about his book is the way that he stands back and views the big picture of human behaviour, and is clear and precise about the way that cognitive, biological, and sociological ideas are actually all part of the same system.

This book is a really impressive piece of work and you should read it straight away.