About Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind - The Julian Jaynes Society Podcast
Listen to "Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind: The Julian Jaynes Society Podcast," where we explore Princeton University psychologist Julian Jaynes's theory of the origin of consciousness and the bicameral mind, as described in his best selling book, "The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind."
Produced by Julian Jaynes Society Executive Director Marcel Kuijsten.
Learn more about Julian Jaynes's theory or become a member by visiting the Julian Jaynes Society at https://www.julianjaynes.org.
48. Consciousness Defined: The Flashlight in the Dark Room
"Right now, there is a serious crisis in the scientific study of the mind. Neurobiologists, philosophers, and AI researchers are all trying to explain consciousness, but they are completely talking past one another. They aren't even working from the same definition. Over time, the word has been stretched so thin that it's lost its utility. ..."
Learn more by reading "Conversations on Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind," currently on sale for a limited time:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737305534/
https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/conversations-on-consciousness-and-the-bicameral-mind/
Or by becoming a member of the Julian Jaynes Society: https://www.julianjaynes.org/join/
Read the transcript: https://www.julianjaynes.org/2026/10/22/consciousness-defined-the-flashlight-in-the-dark-room/
Produced by Marcel Kuijsten using generative AI tools and reviewed by human editors for accuracy and clarity.
9 Oct 2026
47. The Architecture of a Techno-Theocracy: When Artificial Superintelligence Becomes God
"Thinking is exhausting. We often assume that the internal voice narrating our choices — the heavy burden of weighing options and anticipating consequences — is a permanent feature of human biology. But the historical record suggests this introspective consciousness is actually a recently acquired, incredibly taxing adaptation. ..."
Learn more by reading "Conversations on Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind," currently on sale for a limited time:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737305534/
https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/conversations-on-consciousness-and-the-bicameral-mind/
Or by becoming a member of the Julian Jaynes Society: https://www.julianjaynes.org/join/
Read the transcript: https://www.julianjaynes.org/2026/10/09/the-architecture-of-a-techno-theocracy/
Produced by Marcel Kuijsten using generative AI tools and reviewed by human editors for accuracy and clarity.
1 Oct 2026
46. Artificial Superintelligence and the Return to Bicameral Mentality
"If you are familiar with Jaynesian theory, you understand that conscious interiority is not a biological given. It is a recently learned cultural technology -- one that succeeded the hallucinated voices of the bicameral mind. We moved from a world orchestrated by the monumental architecture of ancient ziggurats -- where hallucinated gods directed every action -- to a civilization on the verge of handing it's executive function to a modern, global network of of artificial superintelligence. ..."
Learn more by reading "Conversations on Consciousness and the Bicameral Mind," currently on sale for a limited time:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737305534/ (https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUZZTVljRVNCcW9sVE9tblhMSG1fTEFWeTJQTHxBTl9pYzRjV0FYRFVRYWNTVlNfTm1tWkZlYURZMjJ1OHZuRkdHVlpVMHVYZjBhN1BnMDU2YTg1VkhzOFoyNC1SYzVQeThPcE9UY2ZxV3U4enBNOXlSb3h6ZlRUTGxxOGJOQjNf&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2F1737305534%2F&v=FmkrPnA8uHQ)
https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/conversations-on-consciousness-and-the-bicameral-mind/ (https://www.julianjaynes.org/book/conversations-on-consciousness-and-the-bicameral-mind/)
Or by becoming a member of the Julian Jaynes Society: https://www.julianjaynes.org/join/ (https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUZZTVljR0VDUjZVTG16RXlxeTBZRGljYlViN3xBTl9pYzRkcjBBa0thTWhDcmg4YmRyOVZNd3Y3cGoyY3JXUzNiVWx4ajhGQkpxbFNteGVkWnMzTnpRT2dwV1hWT2pwVG5zODFQMWdCS0RVVjJNajJtaVJPTDRfWWxHR0tJdmpl&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.julianjaynes.org%2Fjoin%2F&v=FmkrPnA8uHQ)
Read the transcript: https://www.julianjaynes.org/ (https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUZZTVljR0VWZ2ZMbmtnRWRqakxoOFpsVlFJZHxBTl9pYzRkN2xIQmRnN014enA4ekpWbHUzUDdPY3hWanV6aU1teFBOcUNCcHhobWhGclFOcWVZNzNOemxwSDEwUzV5OGVPWFAtX2hFZHhWVV9kZ0hTZ21mOTZGWDZDRHRFaWN5&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.julianjaynes.org%2F&v=FmkrPnA8uHQ)
Produced by Marcel Kuijsten using generative AI tools and reviewed by human editors for accuracy and clarity.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
463,108
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.9 / 5
9 ratings
Spotify
4.4 / 5
7 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 54 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
46
Social presence
0
YouTube
86
Engagement
68
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