A World Appears. A Journey into Consciousness

From the author of How to Change Your Mind: a comprehensive exploration of consciousness—what it is, whom it belongs to, and why it exists—
accompanied by reflections on the human condition.

Everyone agrees on consciousness as a phenomenon: we can imagine what it is like to be ourselves. Yet the fact that we experience the world subjectively remains one of nature's greatest mysteries. How is it possible for our mental operations to be accompanied by feelings, thoughts, and a sense of identity? What would a scientific investigation of our inner life look like when we are so close to it, viewing it like fish in the sea? In The World Appears, Michael Pollan charts the unmapped continent of consciousness, presenting fundamentally different perspectives—scientific, philosophical, literary, spiritual, and psychedelic—to see what each can teach us about these questions.

Pollan introduces us to the vanguard of neuroscience, where researchers are developing more radical (and less materialistic) theories of consciousness; to plant neurobiologists seeking the first glimmer of awareness in flora; to scientists hoping to embed feelings into artificial intelligence; and to psychologists and novelists striving to capture the experience of our stream of consciousness.

The World Appears takes us into the laboratories of our own minds and shows us how we can make better use of the gift of awareness to connect with the world and with our deepest selves.