The Sunday Times bestselling Being You is an accessible, inspiring and eye-opening exploration of the brain by one of the most remarkable pioneers working in science today. Being You is not as simple as it sounds. Somehow, within each of our brains, billions of neurons work to create our conscious experience. How does this happen? Why do we experience life in the first person? After over twenty years researching the brain, world-renowned neuroscientist Anil Seth puts forward a radical new theory of consciousness and self. His unique theory of what it means to 'be you' challenges our understanding of perception and reality and it turns what you thought you knew about yourself on its head. Review A brilliant beast of a book. A wide ranging synthesis pulling together disparate stands from philosophy, science, literature, personal experience and speculation - this latter being the most exciting for me, despite some proposals being as yet unproven. Seth proposes to explain not just what and how we are, but probably provocative for some folks, why we are the way we are. Why do we have the feeling of continually being the same person? (when obviously I, at least, am not) Why do we have this feeling of being self aware? What is it for? Hugely inspirational - I filled up 10 pages with exuberant notes. Keep a pencil handy. -- David Byrne Insightful and profound. The nature of consciousness is still one of the hardest problems in science, but Anil Seth brings us closer than ever before to the answer. This a hugely important book. -- Jim Al-KhaliliAnil Seth thinks clearly and sharply on one of the hardest problems of science and philosophy, cutting through weeds with a scientist's mind and a storyteller's skill. -- Adam RutherfordSeth provokes us to think about thinking. And he offers what the interested reader always needs - a book which makes complex ideas readable, relatable, and gripping. If you want to understand his subject better - he'll help you. And who wouldn't want to better understand consciousness? In our lives, there is nothing weirder or more fundamental. -- Alex Garland ― director of EX MACHINAAmazing . . . a brilliant read. -- Russell BrandMasterly . . . deftly weaves the philosophical, biological and personal with a lucid clarity and coherence that is thrilling to read . . . This much-anticipated book lays out his radical theory of our invented reality with accessible and compelling writing . . . meticulously researched . . . Being You is an exhilarating book: a vast-ranging, phenomenal achievement that will undoubtedly become a seminal text. -- Gaia Vince ― GuardianA pioneering neuroscientist takes readers to the edge of what is known, how scientists know it, and, most importantly, how that knowledge could be made useful in medicine and psychology. ― The Economist (Books of the Year)Fascinating. -- Clive Cookson ― Financial Times (Books of the Year)If you only read one book about consciousness, it must be [Seth's] . . . Being You is an impressive work that handles complex issues with exceptional insight and beautiful clarity . . . Seth is meticulously precise in his use of language . . . it shows how hard-nosed science can also be deeply humane. -- Julian Baggini ― Wall Street JournalIn an engaging and accessible manner, [Seth introduces] important theoretical frameworks, reporting cutting-edge experimental work and sensitively recounting real-life case studies . . . Being You depicts the brain as a creative artist, restlessly c