METAZOA Animal Life and the Birth of the Mind

Listening to Godfrey-Smith's exploration of animal consciousness will rattle every nook and cranny of your brain with an onslaught of interesting questions. How does the flow of electrons in an electrical circuit differ from the electricity coursing through an animal's nervous system? Where is the boundary between animal instinct and intention? What constitutes agency, individualism, or intelligence in animals? Narrator Mitch Riley presents these philosophical questions at the perfect pace for pondering. Riley also imparts the author's enthusiasm and humor when interacting with "implausible animals" like sea sponges, octopuses, and banded shrimp. The author's clever use of visual metaphors and images from art and architecture makes for a seamless translation into the audio format. By carefully dissecting the evolutionary building blocks of consciousness, the author leaves listeners with a radical new perspective on animal minds. J.T. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2021]