The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
387. What You See and Feel is Not Reality | Dr. Donald Hoffman
12 Oct 2023
Dr. Jordan B Peterson and cognitive neuroscientist Dr. Donald Hoffman discuss what we know as reality, why space time is now being considered a “doomed” framework, and how consciousness can be understood as a vast probability space within which we orient ourselves. Hoffman received a Bachelor of Arts degree in quantitative psychology from the University of California at Los Angeles, and then his Doctorate of Philosophy in computational psychology at MIT. He briefly worked as a research scientist at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab, before taking on the role of assistant professor at the University of California at Irvine. He is now a professor in the department of Cognitive Sciences. He has written four books (below), on the topics of human vision, perception, consciousness, and the effects of/reasons for evolution on each. He is also a key proponent of MUI (Multimodal User Interface) theory, which states that "perceptual experiences do not match or approximate properties of the objective world, but instead provide a simplified, species-specific, user interface to that world." Hoffman argues that conscious beings have not evolved to perceive the world as it actually is but have evolved to perceive the world in a way that maximizes "fitness payoffs.” - Links - For Dr. Donald Hoffman: "The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes" (Book) https://www.amazon.com/Case-Against-Reality-Evolution-Truth-ebook/dp/B07JR1FDXH/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1OMOD0ZGPHCT9&keywords=the+case+against+reality&qid=1697060197&s=digital-text&sprefix=the+case+against%2Cdigital-text%2C189&sr=1-1 "Visual Intelligence: How We Create What We See" (Book) https://www.amazon.com/Visual-Intelligence-How-Create-What/dp/0393319679/ref=sr_1_1?crid=QZBIXXULF7VC&keywords=Visual+intelligence+hoffman&qid=1697060273&s=digital-text&sprefix=visual+intelligence+hoffman%2Cdigital-text%2C138&sr=1-1-catcorr Dr. Hoffman on X https://twitter.com/donalddhoffman?lang=en Dr. Hoffman's Ted Talk https://www.ted.com/talks/donald_hoffman_do_we_see_reality_as_it_is?language=en Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
No persons identified in this episode.
This episode hasn't been transcribed yet
Help us prioritize this episode for transcription by upvoting it.
Popular episodes get transcribed faster
Other episodes from The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
Transcribed and ready to explore now
552. The Feminism Debate: Can Women Have It All? | Megyn Kelly
02 Jun 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
551. An Honest Take on the Looming Energy Crisis | Scott Tinker
29 May 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
550. Broken, Blacklisted, and Saved by Comedy | Tyler Fischer
26 May 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
549. Matt Walsh on Making Movies, the Woke Right, & Winning
22 May 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
Parental Roles
21 May 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
548. Jordan Peterson Takes Your Call: Advice, Mental Health, Family Dynamics | Mikhaila Fuller
19 May 2025
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast