Stories by Christof Koch

Generative AI has made giant strides toward machine intelligence. Can machine consciousness be far behind?

The NIH’s Cell Census delivers on its promise by mapping the cells in the motor cortex

Applying electric currents reveals the function of varying brain regions and helps to alleviate neurological disorders

A close brush can leave a lasting mental legacy—and may tell us about how the mind functions under extreme conditions

AI may equal human intelligence without matching the true nature of our experiences

An experiment that partially revived slaughterhouse pig brains raises questions about the precise end point of life

Scientists are beginning to unravel a mystery that has long vexed philosophers

Zapping the brain with magnetic pulses while measuring its electrical activity is proving to be a reliable way to detect consciousness

Brain imaging can establish a two-way lifeline to some severely brain-damaged patients 

The bits and pieces of the brain that render us conscious reside in places few suspected

During microsleep, the entire brain nods off so briefly that we often don’t notice it. Now research shows that individual neurons in the brain can slumber, too, especially when we are sleep-deprived 

Animals are not the only creatures who can be literally half asleep. Research shows we experience this, too

As a leading go player falls to a machine, artificial intelligence takes a decisive step on the road to overtaking the natural variety

From Aristotle to Watson, views on the mind, brain and soul have evolved. A brilliant new book adds perspective

As a leading go player falls to a machine, artificial intelligence takes a decisive step on the road to overtaking the natural variety

A form of encephalitis that caused both wakefulness and profound somnolence reveals much about our inner clocks

Turns out some species are better endowed than we are in key cognitive regions

The search to grasp how A.I. neural networks process photos yields insights and weirdness

A philosopher worries about computers’ ever accelerating abilities to outpace human skills

The famed neurologist–author found uniqueness in every patient and savored the miracle of existence, whether it be found in squirrel monkeys or people

Artificial intelligence is coming of age and challenging our belief that being smart and being conscious go hand-in-hand

A few neurologists and brain scientists are proposing that the secret underlying all conscious activity must lie with the way cells respond to stimuli they receive from their environment. In a response to this suggestion, Christof Koch asserts that much more is required for a full theory of consciousness

Our ability to provide rapid, accurate answers engages a small area in the brain’s basal ganglia, a hub for learning and automatic behaviors

An imagined conversation explores perspectives on the brain and consciousness