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Decades-long bet on consciousness ends — and it’s philosopher 1, neuroscientist 0

Christof Koch wagered David Chalmers 25 years ago that researchers would learn how the brain achieves consciousness by now. But the quest continues.
  1. Mariana Lenharo
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David Chalmers (L) shakes hands with Christof Koch (R) onstage at the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness meet

David Chalmers (left) and Christof Koch met on 23 June in New York City to settle up their bet. Credit: Jesse Winter for Nature

A 25-year science wager has come to an end. In 1998, neuroscientist Christof Koch bet philosopher David Chalmers that the mechanism by which the brain’s neurons produce consciousness would be discovered by 2023. Both scientists agreed publicly on 23 June, at the annual meeting of the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness (ASSC) in New York City, that it is an ongoing quest — and declared Chalmers the winner.

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Nature 619, 14-15 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-02120-8

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