What evolutionary role does consciousness play? | Denis Noble, Stuart Hameroff, Antonella Tramacere @TheInstituteOfArtAndIdeas

Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago

Denis Noble, Stuart Hameroff and Antonella Tramacere discuss whether the theory of evolution and consciousness are irreconcilable.

Are the theory of evolution and the reality of consciousness incompatible?

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We see Darwin's theory of evolution as central to our understanding of the animate world. At the same time, as Descartes identified, we can doubt almost everything, but we can't doubt the fact of experience. Yet there is a danger that these two central beliefs are irreconcilable. From the point of view of evolution, everything biological has a function in sustaining the species, but researchers claim no function can be found for conscious experience. And if there is no survival benefit to experience, why has it evolved?

Should we accept that the theory of evolution and the reality of consciousness are incompatible? Do we need to radically alter our understanding of one, or the other, or both? Or is the core issue that we have no credible theory of consciousness, and without it, we are not going to be able to make experience compatible with science at all?

#evolution #darwin #consciousness

Stuart Hameroff is an American anesthesiologist and professor at the University of Arizona. He is known for his controversial and creative theories on the quantum origin of consciousness.
Antonella Tramacere is an expert in the philosophy of cognition and neuroscience. She is an assistant professor at the Department of Philosophy, Communication and Performance at Roma Tre in Rome.

Denis Noble is Professor Emeritus and co-Director of Computational Physiology at Oxford University. He is known for his ground-breaking work in biology and physiology.
Hosted by Güneş Taylor, training fellow at the Francis Crick Institute, the London-based biomedical research centre.

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What evolutionary role does consciousness play? | Denis Noble, Stuart Hameroff, Antonella Tramacere

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