“It takes a special kind of person to write illuminatingly about consciousness—a person who not only is steeped in cognitive science, biology, and philosophy, but also has a fertile imagination, an openness to new ideas, and a sensitivity to the richness and variety of experience in humans and other animals. Nicholas Humphrey is such a person, and in his new book he cements his claim to be one of the most insightful writers on this notoriously difficult topic.”
Keith Frankish, philosopher of mind; author of Illusionism as a Theory of Consciousness
"For half a century, Nick Humphrey has been a hugely influential figure across the fields of experimental psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy, and, for my money, is the most inventive psychological thinker of his generation. Taking a long view of his entire scientific career and peppered with brilliant anecdotes, Sentience crystallizes Humphrey's latest thinking on the evolution of consciousness. There are many dazzling insights on offer, but, for me, the most eye-catching development is the formulation of a framework for diagnostic sentience-testing—in other words, for determining which other animal species are sentient or even in possession of a sense of self. How staggeringly bold! Imagine what a shock wave such a test would generate—scientifically and philosophically, of course, but also out into the political sphere."
Paul Broks, author of Into the Silent Land: Travels in Neuropsychology and The Darker the Night, the Brighter the Stars: A Neuropsychologist's Odyssey Through Consciousness
“A compelling treatise on the evolution of consciousness from one of our finest psychologists. His excellent book will challenge you to think about nature's deepest and most personal mystery in a new and thoroughly enlightening way.”
Anil Seth, author of Being You
"Nobody has thought more deeply, originally or poetically about animal sentience and the notion of consciousness. In this bold and persuasive book he lays out how he came to his conclusions in a lifetime of studying animal and human minds."
Matt Ridley, author of The Red Queen and other books
"Nicholas Humphrey is a psychologist who has always thought outside the box. In this bold book he goes back to basics, philosophical and biological. It's a provocative and fascinating read, brought to life by the account of his own pioneering work on blindsight."
Marian Stamp Dawkins, author of Why Animals Matter
"Wonderfully approachable... with a writing style somewhere between a deep conversation and a thought process. I particularly loved Humphrey's description of his heading off to Elba to investigate the paranormal claims of the eccentric Hugh Sartorius Whitaker and his experiences with Dian Fossey (not always pleasant) when visiting to study the 'natural psychologist' ability of gorillas.... Reading this book was a real pleasure."
Brian Clegg
Popular Science Books
“A stimulating exercise in experiment and speculation... [a] fascinating premise.... Complex and sometimes counterintuitive concepts rendered with admirable skill.”
Kirkus Reviews
"Sentience is full of provocative ideas, as well as lively anecdotes from decades of pondering these issues. Humphrey's thesis offers a great deal to think about....[H]is book earns its place...and is a valiant reminder of how much there still is to understand."
New Scientist
The history of science has alwyas relied on hard lines and clear categories, and for a long time one of the hardest of those lines was that between sentience and non-sentience. But as theoretical psychologist Nicholas Humphrey explores in Sentience, that line may not be as clear as initially thought, as discoveries in machine-learning, neurobiology, and animal consciousness raise more questions than they answer.
LitHub
Nicholas Humphrey's Beautiful Theory of Mind.... In his new book, Sentience, a neuropsychologist argues that consciousness evolved to make us feel that life is worth living.
The New Yorker
“bold, brilliant, honest … [Humphreys'] directness and philosophical sophistication are unusual in the crowded and noisy neuroscientific marketplace … [An] important contribution to the debate. All future writers on consciousness will need to take Humphrey's speculations seriously. It is no less significant because it's written breezily and accessibly. I know of no better survey of the big questions in discussions about consciousness.”
Fortean Times
