Phi: A Voyage from the Brain to the Soul

A scholar of impeccable credentials, on returning from a sabbatical in Europe, said: "The French come up with all the great original ideas, the Germans do the back-breaking scholarly research, and then the Italians publish it in beautiful books." I thought of this constantly as I read Phi: A Voyage from the Brain to the Soul, by neuroscientist Giulio Tononi. This is the latest in what seems a never-ending series of brilliant books on "the nature of consciousness," a subject in which we all have a vested interest, a fact we take for granted until something affects our ability to be fully conscious, and a theme that brings together philosophers, psychologists, neuroscientists, and theologians. When taught in Philosophy Departments it is called: "Philosophy of Mind," and there are web-based courses available on iTunes, as well as an excellent course by Patrick Grimm from The Teaching Company. Three years ago I loudly proclaimed that Patricia Churchland's book Braintrust: What Neuroscience Tells Us About Morality, was an awesome update on the problem of Consciousness. Two years ago I profiled Antonio Damasio's Self Comes to Mind as the best book on the topic for that year; last fall I reviewed Christof Koch's book, Consciousness: Confessions of a Romantic Reductionist, and said it was the best book of 2012 on the topic. I am going out on a limb and saying it is impossible for anyone to publish a better book on consciousness in 2013 than Tononi's book, and I have every confidence I will be correct! The book not only updates current thinking about the nature and scope of consciousness, it is beautifully illustrated, with an ingenious selection of paintings and pictures that document the author's convictions. I am, by dint of fifty years of experience, an Aristotle scholar, and I tend to begin my own philosophical investigations by seeing what Aristotle had to say on any given topic. Aristotle's ruminations on "thought" come in a book whose Greek title is PERI PSYCHES, which we might best translate as "On the nature of mental life." Aristotle said there was something very distinctive about human thought, something that smacked of "the immaterial." If you take a stamp into moist wax, it leaves an imprint; when you think, said Aristotle, something like that happens, only there is nothing physical that leaves an imprint. Here is Aristotle, in his own words: "Thus it is in old age the activity of mind or intellectual apprehension declines only through the decay of some inward part; mind itself does not change. Thinking, loving and hating are affections not of mind, but of that which has mind, to whatever extent it can exercise it. That is why, when the vehicle decays, memory and love cease: they were activities, not of mind, but of the composite (mind and physical brain), and the composite has perished. Mind itself is something more divine and not subject to decay." (Aristotle, PERI PSYCHES, 408b23-29, my translation of the Greek text.) Texts like these were used by Moslem, Jewish, and Christian theologians for thousands of years as they deliberated questions of immortality of the soul and/or resurrection of the body. Aristotle is somewhat out of favor in the neuroscience literature, but his insights, and the "common sense" character of his reflections, very much influence the way we think about our mental life. But the neuroscientists are building a very different vocabulary, and even popular reflections on the nature of what consciousness is, and how the mind works, will be driven by these consciousness researchers. Rene Descartes is generally regarded as the first "modern" philosopher, and everybody has heard of "I think, therefore I am." Perhaps it was Descartes' obsession with his own thinking that has driven modern philosophy down the path of so much reflection on the nature of consciousness. This is what Descartes had to say: "Consciousness never expires, not even for a moment. What the brain does is immaterial; consciousness uses it to communicate with the body, and through the body with the world, but consciousness is a different substance, and does not need the brain to exist." (Tononi's translation.) We take consciousness all too much for granted; it seems like at least once a year, a book comes along that awakens me from my dogmatic slumbers, and, while any one of the books I have mentioned will work well as an introduction to the study of consciousness, I think Tononi's is in a league by itself. Here is what two famous neuroscientists have to say about the book: "Giulio Tononi is a man of bold and original mind who has developed a fundamental new theory of consciousness. In Phi, he calls on all the resources of drama, metaphor, and the visual arts (the artistic illustrations in the book are spellbinding) to present his scientific insights, in the form of imaginary dialogues in which Galileo meets Francis Crick, Alan Turing, and other major thinkers of the twentieth century. This is an astonishing and risky literary device, but Tononi pulls it off triumphantly. He makes the deepest neuroscientific insights come alive." --Oliver Sacks, author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. "You may or may not endorse Giulio Tononi's views on how the brain generates consciousness, but you can certainly agree that his book is a garden of intellectual delights." --Antonio Damasio, author of Self Comes to Mind. If you choose to read this book, expect that it will take you more than a month to read the 350 pages, for you will read less than 10 pages a day. But if you choose to do so, it will be among the most mind-boggling times of your life. What does it mean to be conscious? What are you doing when you are thinking? Why does your brain work better at some times than at other times? Tononi might help you think through some of these problems for your self---if indeed that conscious self is what you really are...

==== Context ==== For the sake of context, I am a student in the biomedical sciences. I have taken a few psychology and neuroscience classes. I wanted to read this book because I am interested in learning more about the human consciousness and how it is related to the biological brain. However, I have never had any formal introduction to it and none of my classes have focused very much on this topic. ==== Overall ==== Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was an unique reading experience, but it was definitely not what I expected. This book has a lot to offer beyond just the biological connection to consciousness (which was my expectation). However, there are sections where the author tends to get bogged down in discussion and musings, and to me, this detracts from the overall experience. Not everyone will enjoy this type of book, but the ideas and theories offered by Dr. Tononi on this field are fascinating to think and debate about. === Synopsis === "Phi" is a story about the famed astronomer and scientist, Galileo. Similar to "guided enlightenment" theme of "A Christmas Carol", Galileo is helped by three scientists on his journey to understand our consciousness. In the first third of the book, Frick (based on Francis Crick, the geneticist who also spent a great deal of time studying the consciousness) takes our protagonist on a series of encounters to help him answer Galileo's original question: "How could mere matter generate mind?" Once Galileo is convinced of the soul-brain connection, he faces more difficult questions regarding consciousness - questions that can't be explained by simply looking at research and clinical findings. In this second part, Alturi (based off of Alan Turing, whose namesake Test has implications in consciousness and artificial intelligence), demonstrates to Galileo a series of thought experiments, that, along with the facts presented in his first journey, present a theory of consciousness based on Phi. The third part, hosted by a man modeled around Darwin, shows Galileo's understanding the overarching implications of the "phi" theory. Each chapter of the book is meant to convey one big idea or theme regarding consciousness that Galileo and the reader. Most of the time, the bulk of the chapter is spent on a story, discussion, or metaphor that will be presented to the audience in order to emphasize that idea. Every chapter also has many pictures, paintings, or photos dispersed through it, each adding a visual element to the argument being made or evidence being presented. Lastly, a "Notes" section concludes every chapter, where the author provides his own commentary, explains minor characters, translates quotes, elaborates on evidence, provides references for the art, etc. ==== What I Liked ==== There are many aspects of this book that I really liked. Since I am interested in the brain and the mind, the content had an obvious appeal for me. And the content is really what this book is about. All the other parts of the story are just a way for Tononi to get his point across. I thought the neurological evidence and basic neuroscience was presented in a very clear and intriguing manner. Dr Tononi did a great job with his explanations of the biological background and brain deficits and disorders by presenting them in interesting anecdotes and with relevant historical characters and factual references. The material is definitely accessible to someone new to the field of neuroscience. And for those with a neuro background, it was presented in such a way that it was still interesting and instructive. The structure of the book made it a very unique and enjoyable reading experience. The chapters are often a balance of subjective discussion with a connection to a more objective element, such as neurological evidence, such as when Tononi uses Tale of the Two Cities to explain the difference between the cerebrum and the cerebellum, and why one is involved in consciousness and the other isn't. Likewise, Tononi uses a balance of both scientific evidence and relevant art, history, culture, and mythology. This balance can also be seen in the illustrations used: alongside stunning photographs of stained hippocampal neurons will be Renaissance paintings. Besides photos of Classical Greek sculptures, Tononi will place a hand-sketch of the corpus callosum, the bridge between the brain hemispheres. Yet both elements, the objective brain MRI scans and the subjective portrait of Copernicus, are skillfully woven together by Tononi to illustrate an idea about consciousness. I also really liked the "Notes" section at the end of each chapter. These aren't just references and citations. Rather than write as the author, Dr. Tononi does something unique and adds commentary to Galileo's journey as if he is a detached observer, discussing a journey he is witnessing himself. This definitely adds an interesting perspective to an an already engrossing chapter, and you will definitely want to read every "Notes" section. One of the most obvious elements of the book is the language and writing of Tononi. He writes in a very flowing and eloquent manner that makes it easy and pleasant to read through. It is almost as if you're reading a poem. The dialogue of the characters is also very well written. Frick's lines, such as: "You are empty, Galileo, and have no spirit: nothing enters your immature body at conception and nothing leaves your carcass at death" and "You are merely another beast in the great zoo of the universe" convey his character - that of scientific certainty and arrogance - artfully and make him a far more relatable part of the journey. Tononi's writing style is definitely an enjoyable and attractive part of this tale. Other things I liked include the minor characters, often pulled from literary or historical contexts. I enjoyed reading about their contribution (often counter-argument) to the discussion and how Tononi decided to portray them. And if you don't know much about them, the author talks about them in his "Notes". ==== What I Didn't Like ===== Back to content, which is the purpose of this book. I have one complaint about the book. It's not huge, but it did bother me and it was prevalent. I thought that at several points throughout the book, Dr. Tononi's discussions became too abstract and too convoluted to clearly convey the point of the chapter. This was especially common problem in the latter parts of Galileo's journey, where the author is attempting to create complex theories and associations and project potential implications. It just feels as if he tries to be too complex and ostentatious, and this can unnecessarily slow down reading all throughout the book. On the last third of the book, I couldn't clearly understand some of the points Tononi was trying to make. Maybe this won't be a problem for a more experienced reader. ===== Final Thoughts ==== Dr. Tononi's book is not for someone who is looking to understand consciousness through a purely biological lens. In fact, only a third of the book would satisfy such an audience. Nor would I suggest this book to someone who is looking for just a layman's explanation - the biological explanations and bases are explained well and are not very technical, but the abstract discussions and thought experiments might not be what they are seeking. "Phi" is for someone who wants to view consciousness through many different lenses, both objective and subjective, but ultimately connect all those perspectives together to an understanding of the topic reached by Galileo and proposed by Dr. Tononi. As I said, this is a fascinating topic and the book has a lot to offer regarding it, but my suggestions would be to take your time reading it and understanding the ideas and arguments that are made in it. Whether or not you agree with his theories, this will allow you to get the most from this book. In summary, this is a beautiful book that is both instructive and very interesting to read and think about.

I am a third year psychology and engineering student. My main interest is in cognitive science, and questions of consciousness. This is one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. The book explores the questions of consciousness through a fictional character that resembles the 16th century scientist Galileo. Each chapter is around 10-15 pages long and involves Galileo meeting a new person, in a new venue. For example, in one chapter Galileo meets a character called Frick (based on Francis Crick from DNA fame), and in another chapter Galileo meets someone suffering from epilepsy. Each one of the characters and situations that Galileo encounters provokes different questions about the nature of consciousness and free will. I think that this book would be best appreciated by someone who is already conversant with the basic ideas in cognitive science and psychology. At the end of each chapter, the author provides notes that explain the ideas in each chapter, however, I think it could be easy to get lost without already knowing about most of the ideas in these notes. As an example, in the early chapters the author writes about the cerebellum, the cerebrum and some other brain structures. It would probably be useful to come into the book having a basic understanding of how these structures work. A great feature of this book is the amazing illustrations. The book is printed on very high quality paper, and just about every page contains some kind of illustration. I think that these illustrations work well with the various metaphors that appear in the book. For me, it made my brain start to wonder of in new directions, thinking of new ideas and questions related to consciousness. In summary, if you love to think about how the mind works and also enjoy story telling then this book is perfect for you. If you're looking for an introductory text on brain science then you may want to look elsewhere.

This book is an attempt to explain, using non-mathematical demonstrations and analogies, integrated information theory as it pertains to a theory of consciousness . It's a very interesting read and much more entertaining than one would assume a book of this type would be. The author illustrates his points by means of small "drama episodes" that play out between certain key historical figures. For some odd reason, the author disguises the names of these famous historical figures (except for Galileo), so it's difficult to tell just who is speaking to whom. I thoroughly enjoyed the book for the first several chapters, but when the author gets down to the nitty-gritty--that is, illustrating exactly how integrated information gives rise to consciousness--he completely lost me. He may as well have filled the pages with abstract equations and algorithms, because his prose ceased to make sense in any way. And this illustrates the fundamental problem not only with this book but also information theory as an explanation of consciousness: there is simply no way one can move logically from a state of integrated information to a conscious experience of something. There is no line to draw, no equation to complete, no line of reasoning that can describe it. You cannot get a conscious experience of reality from mechanism. One of the historical figures in the book admits this. I tend to think more along the lines of author Kristoff Koch, who states in his book Consciousness that consciousness is so fundamentally different from matter and mechanism that it cannot be explained by analysis of mechanism alone. Consciousness, he says, is inherent in the stuff of reality, from the largest galaxy down to the smallest quantum particle. It's already in the mix. It doesn't come about from complex organizations of matter: it's already there. The degree to which it is there depends on the complexity of the organism or machine. But I digress. This book is great if you are interested in theories of consciousness, but be warned: it gets pretty hard to swallow later on. I wasn't able to finish it: maybe you will. And finally, somone should do a version of this book with the illustrations omitted. They are just silly diversions from the text and serve no real purpose.

You will accompany an aging Galileo, through an intricate set of rooms, to meet an eclectic range of odd characters, where he is challenged by thoughts, ancient and modern, concerning the nature of consciousness, and where it might reside in the brain, if, indeed, that is where this oddity, consciousness, actually resides. Enjoy the journey, it doesn't disappoint. It will make you wonder, who you were, who you are, and who you will become? Kevin Thomas Morgan

An attempt to dress up results of work in neurophysiology, as well as a bit of speculation on where that work is heading, in literary clothing. The author's choice of Galileo as protagonist worked well for me, as did his presentation of what is actually known through the mechanism of fictional case histories. But, after 20 years or so of reading and thinking about the problem of consciousness, I found myself rather disappointed in the "Theoretical" midsection of the book. Neither the author's attempt to define consciousness nor his rather poetic attempt to get at the neurophysiology of qualia worked very well for me, and I finished the book no less confused than when I began. I thought that the interpolated photographs and artwork added both meaning and enjoyment to the read, transforming the book into something like a "graphic" novel. They were, incidentally, my only reason for buying the hardcover edition. But I found the author's writing style a little uneven. Some of Galileo's lapses into American idiom were, as, I think he intended, genuinely funny, but others seemed a bit jarring. Altogether, a good try at putting modern science into the language of metaphor and poetry, but not an entirely successful one.

This book came along a week after a hike with a friend during which we discussed consciousness and how it occured, and its implications for a non-physical, spiritual existence. As a physician, my friend argued that consciousness was merely electrochemical. But what does that mean for physical theories like quantum mechanics, especially string theory that requires multiple universes? Then I hear Dr Tononi interviewed on NPR, thought he might have some answers in this book and ordered the it the next day. Dr Tononi has made the journey from basic neuroscience to spiritual implications fascinating at many levels. From the first chapter, you have the feeling that your experience transcends the written text; you are exposed to the material at many levels simultaneously. Consequently, the information is reinforced and learning enhanced. The author revisits complex concepts several times, linking it to the subject of the chapter at hand, further enhancing learning of sometimes difficult concepts. Even the art used to complement the text is adapted to further explanation of the concept under discussion, sometimes to the point of modifying the art! You find yourself thinking at several levels at the end of every chapter. This is a book that continues to provoke thinking about the material long after you've completed it. It neither supports nor undermines belief systems, but offers a recasting of what "eternal life" might mean. It refreshingly avoids specific conclusions that are beyond scientific observation, leaving any spiritual conclusions to be filtered through one's personal belief system. Dr Tononi does not prescribe, only informs from his experience and intellectual curiosity. I am recommending this book to my friend and I can't wait for the next hiking discussion!

This book was quite a frustrating disappointment. I wanted and expected to learn about consciousness and instead I was treated to a highly affected series of thought experiments in which the author first told rambling stories and then commented on his own rambling stories as though he was a third person. The first third of the book cited real historical examples of how we learned about the brain's operations. That was somewhat interesting. But from there it was all downhill, fast. A few particularly frustrating things about this book: The line between fact and fiction is constantly and annoyingly blurred. The fictional character of Galileo is obviously a real, famous person, and in these thought experiment stories the author tells, there are quite often real quotes used from other notable historical characters. But sometimes the quotes are intentionally wrong or altered for some reason. For each chapter, the author tells another story about an experience about his fictional Galileo, and then follows it up with a "Notes" section that uses perhaps the most annoying artifice I've ever experienced: The author pretends that the story was written by someone other than himself and then either critiques his own story or he asks questions aloud about what the author must have been thinking. For example, in the "Notes" to Chapter 17 he says, "This chapter is sadly underdeveloped: a halfhearted attempt at consciousness' second problem, as confused as Galileo i the cave and logically as jerky as the flight of the bat." Similarly, in Chapter 24, after telling the story of Galileo's inquisitor supposedly dying of dementia to prove the Chapter's subtitle (In which it is said that consciousness disintegrates with dementia), the "Notes" section start off by saying there is no hard evidence that Galileo's inquisitor died of dementia. The author then writes, "perhaps the Cardinal is meant to stand for Everyman," as if the author didn't write both the chapter and the Notes! I don't know what this writing affectation is called but I hope to never experience it again. In the "Notes" to Chapter 26 the author starts by saying, "For some reason, 'Twilight I' begins with references to Russian poets and writers." Once again pretending that the author himself did not write the damn chapter. Many of the chapters claim that they are doing to "show" or "prove" or "demonstrate" something and then do nothing more than tell a made up story that proves nothing and is poorly cited. For example, Chapter 19's subtitle is "In which it is shown that darkness is built of many nested mechanisms that specify what it is not," before launching into a story about Galileo meeting someone with whom he has another dialogue in which the author attempts to use every arcane word he can think of. The author doesn't give many character names. Rather, he calls people "N." The author introduces all sorts of other famous characters into the story but rather than say "Alan Turing" or "Freud" he invents fake people who are obviously intended to be those people and then he winks at himself and then in the "Note" to each corresponding chapter he says those characters are meant to represent those famous people. If we already have Galileo plucked from time for these thought experiments, why not the others? The author is clearly enamored with a huge swath of classical literature and is pedantic as he writes his Notes to summarize and critique his own supposed brilliance. For example, the "Notes" to Chapter 25" start by saying, "The inspiration for this truculent chapter is clearly Kafka's 'In the Penal Colony,' as though that is something that everyone should know. All in all, I regret reading this book, which is an extreme rarity for me. I wish I had known beforehand that this book was more about the flowery language some use to dance around the fact that they/we still do not understand consciousness. Consider yourself warned so that you will not be disappointed if you plow ahead. And in closing I will say that I do understand why some people very much enjoyed this book. The stories were often lovely.

It arrived in great conditions, its a very interesting book it makes you wonder about our reality. I havent finished yet but im happy with it

Das Buch ist insofern außergewöhnlich, dass es kein reines Sachbuch, sondern wie ein Roman geschrieben ist, zudem in einer fast poetischen Sprache. Technische Details findet man weniger, dafür erhält man beim Lesen ein intuitives Verständnis der Sachverhalte.

This is not at all what I was expecting but the author draws you in and before you know it it is 3am and you're getting you head around some incredible concepts without really seeming to try. The book is also beautiful, with carefully selected pictures and illustrations - so much so that I may need to purchase the physical print version. I highly recommend this book to anyone remotely interested in concepts of consciousness and intelligence - the implications of the theory expanded in the book are profound.

The writer turns the hard work of consciousness study into an intriguing tour through the history of philosophy and science.

Une excellente introduction au mystère de la conscience, spectaculairement illustré avec des références à des scientifiques et artistes classiques et leurs oeuvres. La partie II est la plus intéressante, même si le lecteur qui n'a pas lu les publications scientifiques les plus importantes de Tononi ne comprendront pas vraiment les propos des chapitres 20 et 21. L'auteur aurait pu s'efforcer à rédiger une explication claire des conceptes profonds de sa théorie.