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A review by miklosha
The Ego Tunnel: The Science of the Mind and the Myth of the Self by Thomas Metzinger
4.0
I picked this book up after hearing Thomas Metzinger on Waking Up with Sam Harris. I have some understanding of consciousness research, but consider myself a layman.
The Ego Tunnel is largely a theory on how consciousness is constructed through our sensory experiences, with other explorations of lucid dreaming, out of body experiences, and experiences born out of psychoactive drug use. The Tunnel is itself a construction of our own first person experiences, preventing any actual contact with our objective environment. He speaks to at length the slipperiness of the self and how it can be distorted in many of the above mentioned examples.
Metzinger is a philosopher but relies on neurological research to bolster his claims. This has the benefit of a interdisciplinary perspective on consciousness research. However, for the lay reader (myself included), The Ego Tunnel can be compehensive and can be quite dense at times. Take your time.
The Ego Tunnel is largely a theory on how consciousness is constructed through our sensory experiences, with other explorations of lucid dreaming, out of body experiences, and experiences born out of psychoactive drug use. The Tunnel is itself a construction of our own first person experiences, preventing any actual contact with our objective environment. He speaks to at length the slipperiness of the self and how it can be distorted in many of the above mentioned examples.
Metzinger is a philosopher but relies on neurological research to bolster his claims. This has the benefit of a interdisciplinary perspective on consciousness research. However, for the lay reader (myself included), The Ego Tunnel can be compehensive and can be quite dense at times. Take your time.