Christof Koch's Books

Consciousness

Confessions of a Romantic Reductionist

By: Christof Koch

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Consciousness

Confessions of a Romantic Reductionist

By: Christof Koch

A fascinating exploration of the human brain that combines “the leading edge of consciousness science with surprisingly personal and philosophical reflection . . . shedding light on how scientists really think”—this is “science writing at its best” (Times Higher Education). In which a scientist searches for an empirical explanation for phenomenal experience, spurred by his instinctual belief that life is meaningful. What links conscious experience of pain, joy, color, and smell to bioelectrical activity in the brain? How can anything physical give rise to nonphysical, subjective, conscious states? Christof Koch has devoted much of his career to bridging the seemingly unbridgeable gap between the physics of the brain and phenomenal experience. This engaging book—part scientific overview, part memoir, part futurist speculation—describes Koch’s search for an empirical explanation for consciousness. Koch recounts not only the birth of the modern science of consciousness but also the subterranean motivation for his quest—his instinctual (if “romantic”) belief that life is meaningful. Koch describes his own groundbreaking work with Francis Crick in the 1990s and 2000s and the gradual emergence of consciousness (once considered a “fringy” subject) as a legitimate topic for scientific investigation. Present at this paradigm shift were Koch and a handful of colleagues, including Ned Block, David Chalmers, Stanislas Dehaene, Giulio Tononi, Wolf Singer, and others. Aiding and abetting it were new techniques to listen in on the activity of individual nerve cells, clinical studies, and brain-imaging technologies that allowed safe and noninvasive study of the human brain in action. Koch gives us stories from the front lines of modern research into the neurobiology of consciousness as well as his own reflections on a variety of topics, including the distinction between attention and awareness, the unconscious, how neurons respond to Homer Simpson, the physics and biology of free will, dogs, Der Ring des Nibelungen, sentient machines, the loss of his belief in a personal God, and sadness. All of them are signposts in the pursuit of his life's work—to uncover the roots of consciousness.

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195

Publisher

MIT Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0262533502

ISBN 13

9780262533508

The Feeling of Life Itself

Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can't Be Computed

By: Christof Koch

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The Feeling of Life Itself

Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can't Be Computed

By: Christof Koch

A thought-provoking argument that consciousness—more widespread than previously assumed—is the feeling of being alive, not a type of computation or a clever hack In The Feeling of Life Itself, Christof Koch offers a straightforward definition of consciousness as any subjective experience, from the most mundane to the most exalted—the feeling of being alive. Psychologists study which cognitive operations underpin a given conscious perception. Neuroscientists track the neural correlates of consciousness in the brain, the organ of the mind. But why the brain and not, say, the liver? How can the brain—three pounds of highly excitable matter, a piece of furniture in the universe, subject to the same laws of physics as any other piece—give rise to subjective experience? Koch argues that what is needed to answer these questions is a quantitative theory that starts with experience and proceeds to the brain. In The Feeling of Life Itself, Koch outlines such a theory, based on integrated information. Koch describes how the theory explains many facts about the neurology of consciousness and how it has been used to build a clinically useful consciousness meter. The theory predicts that many, and perhaps all, animals experience the sights and sounds of life; consciousness is much more widespread than conventionally assumed. Contrary to received wisdom, however, Koch argues that programmable computers will not have consciousness. Even a perfect software model of the brain is not conscious. Its simulation is fake consciousness. Consciousness is not a special type of computation—it is not a clever hack. Consciousness is about being.

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277

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MIT Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0262539551

ISBN 13

9780262539555

Then I Am Myself the World

What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It

By: Dr. Christof Koch

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Then I Am Myself the World

What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It

By: Dr. Christof Koch

The world’s leading investigator of consciousness argues that by understanding what consciousness does—cause change in the world—we can understand its origins and its future In Then I Am Myself the World, Christof Koch explores the only thing we directly experience: consciousness. At the book’s heart is integrated-information theory, the idea that the essence of consciousness is the ability to exert causal power over itself, to be an agent of change. Koch investigates the physical origins of consciousness in the brain and how this knowledge can be used to measure consciousness in natural and artificial systems. Enabled by such tools, Koch reveals when and where consciousness exists, and uses that knowledge to confront major social and scientific questions: When does a fetus first become self-aware? Can psychedelic and mystical experiences transform lives? What happens to consciousness in near-death experiences? Why will generative AI ultimately be able to do the very thing we can do, yet never feel any of it? And do our experiences reveal a single, objective reality? This is an essential book for anyone who seeks to understand ourselves and the future we are creating.

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239

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Basic Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1541602811

ISBN 13

9781541602816

The Feeling of Life Itself

Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can't Be Computed

By: Christof Koch

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The Feeling of Life Itself

Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can't Be Computed

By: Christof Koch

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277

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MIT Press

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0262539551

ISBN 13

9780262539555

Biophysics of Computation

Information Processing in Single Neurons

By: Christof Koch

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Biophysics of Computation

Information Processing in Single Neurons

By: Christof Koch

Neural network research often builds on the fiction that neurons are simple linear threshold units, completely neglecting the highly dynamic and complex nature of synapses, dendrites, and voltage-dependent ionic currents. Biophysics of Computation: Information Processing in Single Neurons challenges this notion, using richly detailed experimental and theoretical findings from cellular biophysics to explain the repertoire of computational functions available to single neurons. The author shows how individual nerve cells can multiply, integrate, or delay synaptic inputs and how information can be encoded in the voltage across the membrane, in the intracellular calcium concentration, or in the timing of individual spikes. Key topics covered include the linear cable equation; cable theory as applied to passive dendritic trees and dendritic spines; chemical and electrical synapses and how to treat them from a computational point of view; nonlinear interactions of synaptic input in passive and active dendritic trees; the Hodgkin-Huxley model of action potential generation and propagation; phase space analysis; linking stochastic ionic channels to membrane-dependent currents; calcium and potassium currents and their role in information processing; the role of diffusion, buffering and binding of calcium, and other messenger systems in information processing and storage; short- and long-term models of synaptic plasticity; simplified models of single cells; stochastic aspects of neuronal firing; the nature of the neuronal code; and unconventional models of sub-cellular computation. Biophysics of Computation: Information Processing in Single Neurons serves as an ideal text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in cellular biophysics, computational neuroscience, and neural networks, and will appeal to students and professionals in neuroscience, electrical and computer engineering, and physics.

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587

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0199760551

ISBN 13

9780199760558

The Right to Life Under International Law

An Interpretative Manual

By: Stuart Casey-Maslen,Christof Heyns

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The Right to Life Under International Law

An Interpretative Manual

By: Stuart Casey-Maslen,Christof Heyns

Offers the first-ever comprehensive treatment under international law of the foundational human right to life.

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795

Published Date

ISBN 10

1108494781

ISBN 13

9781108494786

The Politics of Welfare State Transformation in Germany

Still a Semi-Sovereign State?

By: Christof Schiller

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The Politics of Welfare State Transformation in Germany

Still a Semi-Sovereign State?

By: Christof Schiller

How can we best analyse contemporary welfare state change? And how can we explain and understand the politics of it? This book contributes to these questions both empirically and theoretically by concentrating on one of the least likely cases for welfare state transformation in Europe. It analyzes in detail how and why institutional change has taken Germany’s welfare state from a conservative towards a new work-first regime. Christof Schiller introduces a novel analytical framework to make sense of the politics of welfare state transformation by providing the missing link: the capacity of the core executive over time. Examining the policy making process in labour market policy in the period between 1980 and 2010, he identifies three different policy making episodes and analyses their interaction with developments and changes in such policy areas as pension policy, family policy, labour law, tax policy and social assistance. The book advances existing efforts aimed at conceptualizing and measuring welfare state change by proposing a clear-cut conceptualization of social policy regime change and introduces a comprehensive analysis of the transformation of the welfare-work nexus between 1980 and 2010 in Germany. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of social policy, comparative welfare state reform, welfare politics, government, governance, public policy, German politics, European politics, political economy, sociology and history.

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Page Count

314

Publisher

Routledge

Published Date

ISBN 10

1317227409

ISBN 13

9781317227403

Imaging the Scenes of War

Aesthetic Crossovers in American Visual Culture

By: Christof Decker

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Imaging the Scenes of War

Aesthetic Crossovers in American Visual Culture

By: Christof Decker

In American visual culture, the 1930s and 1940s were a key transitional period shaped by the era of modernism and the global confrontation of World War II. Christof Decker demonstrates that the war and its iconography of destruction challenged visual artists to find new ways of representing its consequences. Dealing with trauma and war crimes led to the emergence of complex aesthetic forms and media crossovers. Decker shows that the 1940s were a pivotal period for the creation of horrific yet also innovative representations that boosted American visual modernism and set the stage for debates about the ethics of visual culture in the post-9/11 era.

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Page Count

161

Publisher

transcript Verlag

Published Date

ISBN 10

3839462029

ISBN 13

9783839462027

Plant Physics

By: Karl J. Niklas,Hanns-Christof Spatz

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Plant Physics

By: Karl J. Niklas,Hanns-Christof Spatz

From Galileo, who used the hollow stalks of grass to demonstrate the idea that peripherally located construction materials provide most of the resistance to bending forces, to Leonardo da Vinci, whose illustrations of the parachute are alleged to be based on his study of the dandelion’s pappus and the maple tree’s samara, many of our greatest physicists, mathematicians, and engineers have learned much from studying plants. A symbiotic relationship between botany and the fields of physics, mathematics, engineering, and chemistry continues today, as is revealed in Plant Physics. The result of a long-term collaboration between plant evolutionary biologist Karl J. Niklas and physicist Hanns-Christof Spatz, Plant Physics presents a detailed account of the principles of classical physics, evolutionary theory, and plant biology in order to explain the complex interrelationships among plant form, function, environment, and evolutionary history. Covering a wide range of topics—from the development and evolution of the basic plant body and the ecology of aquatic unicellular plants to mathematical treatments of light attenuation through tree canopies and the movement of water through plants’ roots, stems, and leaves—Plant Physics is destined to inspire students and professionals alike to traverse disciplinary membranes.

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447

Publisher

University of Chicago Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0226586340

ISBN 13

9780226586342

Then I Am Myself the World

What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It

By: Dr. Christof Koch

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Then I Am Myself the World

What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It

By: Dr. Christof Koch

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239

Publisher

Basic Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1541602811

ISBN 13

9781541602816

Alan Turing: Life and Legacy of a Great Thinker

By: Christof Teuscher

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Alan Turing: Life and Legacy of a Great Thinker

By: Christof Teuscher

Written by a distinguished cast of contributors, Alan Turing: Life and Legacy of a Great Thinker is the definitive collection of essays in commemoration of the 90th birthday of Alan Turing. This fascinating text covers the rich facets of his life, thoughts, and legacy, but also sheds some light on the future of computing science with a chapter contributed by visionary Ray Kurzweil, winner of the 1999 National Medal of Technology. Further, important contributions come from the philosopher Daniel Dennett, the Turing biographer Andrew Hodges, and from the distinguished logician Martin Davis, who provides a first critical essay on an emerging and controversial field termed "hypercomputation".

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Page Count

580

Publisher

Springer Science & Business Media

Published Date

ISBN 10

3540200207

ISBN 13

9783540200208

The Shadow War Against Hitler

The Covert Operations of America's Wartime Secret Intelligence Service

By: Christof Mauch

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The Shadow War Against Hitler

The Covert Operations of America's Wartime Secret Intelligence Service

By: Christof Mauch

Filled with revelations and replete with telling detail, this riveting book lifts the curtain on the United States' secret intelligence operations in the war against Nazi Germany.

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Page Count

364

Publisher

Columbia University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0231120443

ISBN 13

9780231120449

Mathematical Imagining

A Routine for Secondary Classrooms

By: Christof Weber

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Mathematical Imagining

A Routine for Secondary Classrooms

By: Christof Weber

Imagine a plastic cup lying on the floor. Give the cup a nudge so that it begins to roll. What does the path it takes look like? So begins the journey that Christof Weber takes you on in Mathematical Imagining: A Routine for Secondary Classrooms . Along the way, he makes the case that the ability to imagine, manipulate, and explain mathematical images and situations is fundamental to all mathematics and particularly important to higher level study. Most importantly, drawing on years of experiments in his own classroom, Weber shows that mathematical imagining is a skill that can be taught efficiently and effectively. Mathematical Imagining describes an original routine that gives students space and time to imagine a mathematical situation and then revise, discuss, and act upon the mental images they create. You can use this creative routine to glimpse into your students' thinking and discover teaching opportunities, while empowering them to create their own mathematics.Inside you’ll find the following: An introduction to the routine including the rationale behind it, facilitation guidance, and classroom examples Modifications to implement the routine in your classroom, even with varying time constraints 37 exercises broken into four categories: constructions, problem-solving, reasoning, and paradoxes Discussions of the mathematics involved in each exercise, including possible follow-up questions Instructions on how to create your own exercises beyond the book This one-of-a-kind resource is for secondary teachers looking to inspire student creativity and curiosity, deepen their own subject matter knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge, and invite all students to access the power of their own mathematical imaginations.

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255

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Published Date

ISBN 10

1003839231

ISBN 13

9781003839231

Quantum Chromodynamics on the Lattice

An Introductory Presentation

By: Christof Gattringer,Christian B. Lang

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Quantum Chromodynamics on the Lattice

An Introductory Presentation

By: Christof Gattringer,Christian B. Lang

This introduction to quantum chromodynamics presents the basic concepts and calculations in a clear and didactic style accessible to those new to the field. Readers will find useful methods for obtaining numerical results, including pure gauge theory and quenched spectroscopy.

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Page Count

352

Publisher

Springer

Published Date

ISBN 10

3642018505

ISBN 13

9783642018503

Unilateral Contact Problems

Variational Methods and Existence Theorems

By: Christof Eck,Jiri Jarusek,Miroslav Krbec

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Unilateral Contact Problems

Variational Methods and Existence Theorems

By: Christof Eck,Jiri Jarusek,Miroslav Krbec

The mathematical analysis of contact problems, with or without friction, is an area where progress depends heavily on the integration of pure and applied mathematics. This book presents the state of the art in the mathematical analysis of unilateral contact problems with friction, along with a major part of the analysis of dynamic contact problems

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Page Count

398

Publisher

CRC Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

1420027360

ISBN 13

9781420027365

Biophysics of Computation

Information Processing in Single Neurons

By: Christof Koch

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Biophysics of Computation

Information Processing in Single Neurons

By: Christof Koch

Neural network research often builds on the fiction that neurons are simple linear threshold units, completely neglecting the highly dynamic and complex nature of synapses, dendrites, and voltage-dependent ionic currents. Biophysics of Computation: Information Processing in Single Neurons challenges this notion, using richly detailed experimental and theoretical findings from cellular biophysics to explain the repertoire of computational functions available to single neurons. The author shows how individual nerve cells can multiply, integrate, or delay synaptic inputs and how information can be encoded in the voltage across the membrane, in the intracellular calcium concentration, or in the timing of individual spikes.Key topics covered include the linear cable equation; cable theory as applied to passive dendritic trees and dendritic spines; chemical and electrical synapses and how to treat them from a computational point of view; nonlinear interactions of synaptic input in passive and active dendritic trees; the Hodgkin-Huxley model of action potential generation and propagation; phase space analysis; linking stochastic ionic channels to membrane-dependent currents; calcium and potassium currents and their role in information processing; the role of diffusion, buffering and binding of calcium, and other messenger systems in information processing and storage; short- and long-term models of synaptic plasticity; simplified models of single cells; stochastic aspects of neuronal firing; the nature of the neuronal code; and unconventional models of sub-cellular computation.Biophysics of Computation: Information Processing in Single Neurons serves as an ideal text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in cellular biophysics, computational neuroscience, and neural networks, and will appeal to students and professionals in neuroscience, electrical and computer engineering, and physics.

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587

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0195181999

ISBN 13

9780195181999

Drugs During Pregnancy and Lactation

Handbook of prescription drugs and comparative risk assessment

By: H. Garbis,P. McElhatton,M. Reuvers,E. Robert,M. Rost van Tonningen,A. Scialli,P. Peters,Christof Schaefer

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Drugs During Pregnancy and Lactation

Handbook of prescription drugs and comparative risk assessment

By: H. Garbis,P. McElhatton,M. Reuvers,E. Robert,M. Rost van Tonningen,A. Scialli,P. Peters,Christof Schaefer

The care of pregnant women presents one of the paradoxes of modern medicine. Women usually require little medical intervention during an (uneventful) pregnancy. Conversely, those at high risk of damage to their own health or that of their unborn require the help of appropriate medicinal technology, including drugs. Accordingly, there are two classes of pregnant women, the larger group requires support but not much intervention, while the other needs the full range of diagnostic and therapeutic measures applied in any other branch of medicine. This book presents the current state of knowledge about drugs in pregnancy. In each chapter information is presented separately for two different aspects of the problem seeking a drug appropriate for prescription during pregnancy, and assessing the risk of a drug when exposure has already taken place. Practising clinicians who prescribe medicinal products to women who are, or who may become, pregnant, will find this volume an invaluable reference.

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Page Count

1300

Publisher

Elsevier Science

Published Date

ISBN 10

0444507639

ISBN 13

9780444507631

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