Summary: Interview examines mainstream psychology's approach to near-death experience science. Join Skeptiko host Alex Tsakiris for an interview with Dr. Gary Marcus author of, Kluge: The Haphazard Evolution of the Human Mind. During the interview Marcus explains why he’s skeptical of near-death experience science: Dr. Gary Marcus: I’m also very, very skeptical of [Near-Death Experience Science]. It doesn’t make sense to me, to be honest. It doesn’t fit with the rest of the stuff that I understand about how the brain works, which leads me to believe that something is likely being misinterpreted. I can’t promise that and I haven’t read every word on it… Alex Tsakiris: Have you read any word on it? Have you read any of the leading researchers out there? Dr. Gary Marcus: I’ve read a few words here or there but it doesn’t make sense to me. It would be like you asking me have I read anything on astrology. I mean, I know about astrology but I don’t see the causal mechanisms. Alex Tsakiris: Yeah, but it’s not really astrology. You’ve got Parnia at Cornell, you’ve got the University of Virginia researchers. You’ve got a lot of pretty well-respected people who’ve studied it for a long time and are publishing... Bruce Greyson and all those folks... Dr. Gary Marcus: I don’t doubt that there’s a phenomenon that needs to be explained but I doubt that the explanation is that the brain is not part of the experience that’s being processed. I cannot conceive of how that would be true. Alex Tsakiris: But isn’t that where it gets interesting? These guys are coming at it strictly from a medical standpoint and saying, “Look, the guy died on my table and then told me what happened during resuscitation.” That’s a medical mystery that defies explanation in our current paradigm. Isn’t that where we start? Dr. Gary Marcus: A more parsimonious explanation is the guy wasn’t really dead on the table. There was more stuff happening in the brain than you realize. It’s parsimonious because it fits with everything else we understand about the brain. Otherwise you have to invent a new causal mechanism. I’m not saying that that’s wrong, but I think the standards for doing that need to be high. (continued below) Dr. Gary Marcus's Webpage Play It Listen Now: Download MP3 (29 min.) Read It: Welcome to Skeptiko, where we explore controversial science with leading researchers, thinkers, and their critics. I’m your host, Alex Tsakiris, and as you just heard, my guest today is Dr. Gary Marcus. Now this is one of those interviews that requires a bit of an explanation, not so much for the content of the interview but for why I would even choose to interview Dr. Marcus in the first place. But that explanation should really come at the end, and that’s where I’ve put it. So for now, here’s my interview with Dr. Gary Marcus: Today we welcome NYU psychology professor and best-selling author, Dr. Gary Marcus, to Skeptiko. Dr. Marcus is the Director of the NYU Center for Language and Music, which is a nice fit with his recent New York Times best-seller, Guitar Zero: The Science of Becoming Musical at Any Age. Dr. Marcus, I should mention, also has many impressive scientific publications to his credit, but he’s one of those guys who also writes about psychology and consciousness for the rest of us in places like The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The New Yorker, where he blogs about neuroscience, psychology, and artificial intelligence. Dr. Marcus, it’s a great pleasure to welcome you to Skeptiko. Thanks so much for joining me. Dr. Gary Marcus: Thanks very much for having me. Alex Tsakiris: You’ve written several fascinating books dealing with brain science and, I guess, consciousness. Prior to Guitar Zero you published Kluge, and you published a couple of interesting posts on The New Yorker that you sent me, one titled “The Riddle of Consciousness.” Why don’t we start there?
