Peter Godfrey-Smith believes that encountering an octopus is the closest we might ever come to meeting an intelligent alien, with its eight tentacles so packed with neurons that they virtually think for themselves. His book Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea and the Deep Origins of Consciousness has been hailed by Talking Heads musician David Byrne as his best read of 2018 and as “entrancing and profound” by the Financial Times. Join the Australian scuba-diving philosopher of science for a discussion of the evolutionary journey of cephalopods, and what it teaches us about the human mind, in conversation with Dr Siouxsie Wiles.

Supported by Platinum Bold Patrons Frances & Bill Bell.