[Past Event] Octopus: Exploring Consciousness | Ryan Ranch

Course Description:

Ever wonder why so many science fiction novels use the octopus as a template for aliens? Perhaps, as Peter Godfrey-Smith suggests, “If we want to understand other minds, the minds of cephalopods are the most other of all.” Join us as we examine why octopuses are so intriguing to the human imagination and what new studies on octopus intelligence can tell us about our own. Our exploration may reveal how human intelligence differs from artificial intelligence. We'll read "Other Minds: The Octopus, The Sea, and The Deep Origins of Consciousness" by Godfrey-Smith, excerpts of "The Soul of an Octopus" by Sy Montgomery, and discuss the film "My Octopus Teacher."