Why are you interested in fetal consciousness?
One way to look at it is, I’d really like to know how old I am. I don’t mean my legal age — obviously, I know that. I mean the age of my lived experience, even before my earliest memory. In that sense, am I younger than my legal age (if consciousness begins after birth), the same age (if consciousness starts at birth), or even older (if consciousness starts before birth)? This is an open question that science is really only just beginning to explore.
Can I work for you?
If you already have your own funding, then it’s certainly a possibility. Currently, research positions are already filled for my ERC funding. When I have funding for new positions, I will announce them here.
Are you German?
My name causes a lot of confusion where I live. I’m American by nationality and lived in the USA most of my life, but currently I live in Tuebingen, Germany. In German, my family name means “joyful”, and so some people assume that I grew up in Germany. In fact, my great-great grandfather immigrated from Kaiserslautern to the United States in the 19th Century, and my family hasn’t lived in Germany since then. I’ve been lucky enough to meet a distant relative from the German branch of the family here. I’m also learning the German language, but it’s a very slow process.
Are you on social media?
Yes, but I’m winding down my social media use in light of its negative societal and mental health effects. It’s better to contact me directly through this site.
Are you a doctor?
Yes, I’m a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), but not a Medical Doctor (MD). If you have medical questions, I cannot help you. I’m not qualified to give medical advice, sorry.
I have a medical or psychiatric condition, can you give me advice?
No, sorry, please see above.
Do you also have an affiliation outside academia?
I work full time for the Universitätsklinikum at the University of Tuebingen (i.e., the university hospital) in Germany. However, I do consult for the Institute for Advanced Consciousness Studies (IACS) in Santa Monica, California, which is a new non-profit research institute doing very exciting work to better understand the science of consciousness. I spent much time at IACS during my final years in Los Angeles before moving to Germany.
Do you still write or edit for Knowing Neurons?
I was editor-in-chief of the science communication website Knowing Neurons from 2017 - 2019 and frequently wrote articles for the site, but I’ve since passed on the torch to a great new team. You can find my more recent writing on Substack, and also on my Psychology Today blog. I’m also an occasional contributor for Nautilus.
Your most cited paper is about ketamine, can you give me advice or recommendations about ketamine therapy?
It’s true that my first publication, a 2014 review about the ketamine model of schizophrenia coauthored with Jack Van Horn, is also my most cited paper. However, I haven’t been active in this area of research since then, and during the brief lab rotation that spurred this paper, I was focused on the less desirable effects of ketamine that resemble symptoms of schizophrenia, rather than its therapeutic effects for treatment-resistant depression. The past 10 years since I wrote this paper have seen big developments in ketamine therapy. Unfortunately, I’m not in a position to give anyone medical advice (see earlier FAQs above), including advice in this area. It’s certainly an interesting topic though!