A Consciousness Scientist as DES Subject

Abstract

A few years ago, a world-class consciousness scientist engaged me in an e-mail and telephone conversation about the exploration of inner experience. He knew of my DES work, found it interesting but problematic, and wanted to know more about it. We eventually agreed that he should wear the DES beeper and I would interview him by telephone – then he would know about the process first hand. For a variety of reasons, some of which may be obvious and some others might become clear, I prefer not to identify this person. Serious students of consciousness would recognize his name and his work. In the transcript I will call him “CS,” for “Consciousness Scientist,” and I note that I had not previously met him and never published with him. This chapter is not about CS; it is an example of how a serious student of consciousness went about undertaking the task of encountering DES. In many ways, CS is similar to many students of consciousness as they approach the possibility of exploring inner experience. In other ways, he is unique, with his own personality and his own proclivities and experiences. Constraint: Consciousness science proficiency does not facilitate and might actively interfere with the ability to observe pristine experience . Over the years, many consciousness scientists have expressed interest in DES. I have offered many of those the opportunity to wear the beeper and have me interview them about their experiences; most have declined out of what seemed to me (rightly or wrongly) to be defensiveness (Eric Schwitzgebel and Mike Kane are notable exceptions; see Hurlburt & Schwitzgebel, 2007, and Chapter 6.