I am a philosopher and consciousness researcher at Durham University, UK. My research focuses on how to integrate consciousness into our scientific worldview.

My first academic book, Consciousness and Fundamental Reality (Oxford University Press), was published in 2017 and my first book aimed at a general audience, Galileo's Error: Foundations for a New Science of Consciousness, was published and is available from Amazon Amazon UK Barnes and Noble IndieBound Apple Books.

I argue that the traditional approaches of materialism (consciousness can be explained in terms of physical processes in the brain) and dualism (consciousness is separate from the body and brain) face insuperable difficulties. On the basis of this I defend a form of panpsychism, the view that consciousness is a fundamental and ubiquitous feature of the physical world. It sounds a bit crazy, but I try to show that it avoids the difficulties faced by its rivals.

Probably the best way to get acquainted with my "big picture" is to read this interview in Scientific American, and then maybe listen to some of the podcasts in the audio section of this site, read some of my popular articles, or watch some of the videos.

I also write about religion and politics. I self-identify as a heretical Christian: I don't adhere to traditional Christian beliefs (a supernatural God,  virgin birth, bodily resurrection, etc). In fact, I think it's a modern corruption to  equate 'faith' and 'belief.' Instead, I think of faith as hopeful commitment (see this popular article and podcasts on 'religious fictionalism' in audio section). In terms of politics, I am a vigorous opponent of neo-liberalism and a big fan of taxation.
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in my spare time, I'm in a completely unknown band.