Professor Emeritus of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. Research: Visual perception, evolutionary psychology, consciousness, AI.
Irvine, CA
Joined May 2010
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“Pollan joins Christof Koch, a leading researcher on the neuroscience of consciousness, and moderator Shayla Love, a science journalist, for a conversation about consciousness and what psychedelics can — and cannot — reveal about it”
youtube.com/watch?v=rMf47TNO…
Here is a technical conversation, with Mike Levin's lab a few months ago, on the recursive trace logic and multi-scale collective intelligence.
youtube.com/watch?v=YnfaT5AP…
“... if all possible events are always realized simultaneously...how do the specific quantum probabilities that we observe ... arise?”
scientificamerican.com/artic…—the%20Many%20Worlds%20hypothesis—offers%20a%20radical%20solution&_kx=1_sInfBwwVG_RB2xxefMwYEvnPQxRmw8Tsdu-7dHIXc.WEer5A
John Vervaeke and I discuss perception, evolution, consciousness, collective intelligence, embodiment, and nonspeaking autistics. I take questions from a brilliant audience about theories of observation, and whether we can craft a theory of everything.
youtube.com/watch?v=cWEdAnIU…
According to high-energy theoretical physics, spacetime is not fundamental. What does this imply for physicalist theories of conscious experiences that start with brains or other objects in spacetime? I discuss this with Amira & Aryaan on The Arora Show.
youtube.com/watch?v=t_gfE9G9…
Spacetime and quantum theory are not fundamental. This is the conclusion of many high-energy theoretical physicists.
What lies beyond, and gives rise to, spacetime? Following John Wheeler, I propose a realm of observing agents.
youtube.com/watch?v=G9N4qZUm…
John Wheeler: “The universe does not exist 'out there,' independent of us. We are inescapably involved in bringing about that which appears to be happening. We are not only observers. We are participators.” Here we discuss how Trace pursues this vision.
youtube.com/watch?v=MIwh9_St…
Most theories of consciousness assume that conscious experience arises from physical processes in spacetime. They have so far failed to explain even one specific experience, or illusion of experience. Perhaps that is because spacetime is not fundamental.
quantamagazine.org/the-thoug…
A little over a week from now, I’ll be in New Jersey for a rare East Coast event.
We’ll explore the possibility that spacetime is not fundamental, and what that might tell us about the nature of reality.
Join us: hvstage.org/event/donald-hof…
Thank you!
I have a plenary talk at the Science of Consciousness Conference in San Diego on October 15 at 11. I plan to present a new "recursive trace logic" of observers and agents, and conjecture that spacetime and quanta arise from it.
tsc2026.org/abstracts_html/d…
tsc2026.org/index.html
I look forward to exploring consciousness as a fundamental aspect of reality with Jonathan Allday (particle physicist) and Federico Faggin (inventor of the single-chip microprocessor), in a weekend workshop, Pari, Italy – October 16-19, 2026.
paricenter.com/event/conscio…
Why do Darwinian evolution and high-energy theoretical physics agree that spacetime is not fundamental? Why have physicalist theories of consciousness failed to explain even one specific experience? Why is it insightful to relax and play in spacetime?
youtube.com/watch?v=rixgnuou…
Physicalist theories have not yet explained even one specific conscious experience. Why do they all fail?
I look forward to be in New Jersey on Oct. 3 for a public interview and Q&A on consciousness, AI, and reality beyond spacetime.
Tickets are limited
hvstage.org/event/donald-hof…
It was a pleasure to talk with Crystal on SoulPod about why consciousness has stumped scientists for decades, and why spacetime is like a multiplayer VR headset created by conscious observers.
youtube.com/watch?v=LyJwr4O0…
“Ivette Fuentes discusses Roger Penrose's quantum theory of consciousness while arguing that solving the mystery of consciousness may require a profound revolution in physics itself.”
youtube.com/watch?v=e1ZvfRqy…
What is consciousness? Does it arise from physical systems in spacetime, or do spacetime and physical systems arise from it? Can AI be conscious? Should moral constraints govern our interactions with AI? I discuss these questions with Sophia Aryan
youtube.com/watch?v=Wradn9wo…
“But if dreams teach us anything, it may be that the observer will not be found by science as another object in the world. It may only be recognized through the experience of being aware.”
iai.tv/articles/dreams-show-…
Are DMT entities real?
Andrew Gallimore and I propose a testable scientific hypothesis: DMT may alter our spacetime headset, letting us see conscious agents that are invisible in normal consensus reality.
See our conversation at the Trace Institute:
traceinstitute.org/events/tr…
““Dr. Andrew Gallimore returns to the mind meld to explore his new collaboration with cognitive scientist, Donald Hoffman ... a mind-bending synthesis of altered states research, conscious agents” and mathematics.
youtube.com/watch?v=vQi-Cj5K…
It was a pleasure to talk with Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly to explore what neuroscience, evolutionary game theory, virtual reality, psychedelics, observers, and consciousness suggest about the nature of reality itself.
youtube.com/watch?v=GEtCYwr3…
