Consciousness Club

The Consciousness Club is a revival of a meeting of the same name that was organised in the 1990s by Chris Frith. We aim to bring together an interdisciplinary audience of colleagues in various fields of cognitive science, neuroscience, psychology and philosophy in the London area with a mutual interest in consciousness science. We provide a friendly atmosphere with plenty of time for discussion. The seminar series is generously supported by the Leverhulme Trust, and co-hosted by Steve Fleming and Nadine Dijkstra.

All are welcome! To join our mailing list, please send an email to Sarah Kalwarowsky (s.kalwarowsky[at]ucl.ac.uk).

Talks are held via Zoom, and login details will be provided via the mailing list. Recordings of talks will be uploaded here with the speaker’s permission, but we encourage everyone to join “live” where possible for the interactive discussion. To access recordings of previous speakers’ talks, please click on the image of each speaker to be taken to the video page or head to our Youtube page.

Featured

Nov 11

November 11, 2026

Qing Yu

November 11, 2026

Title: Understanding human thinking and the generative mind

Abstract: A core feature of human intelligence is the ability to flexibly construct internal representations to guide thought and behavior. While these processes rely on distributed brain networks, how the brain coordinates multiple internal representations to support flexible thought and imagination remains poorly understood. In this talk, I will present a series of recent studies investigating these neural dynamics. I will first demonstrate how a distributed working memory network underlies the generation and maintenance of internal representations. I will then show how the canonical working memory network interacts with the default mode network to support the prioritization and sustained maintenance of multiple internal representations. Finally, if time permits, I will reveal how the brain dynamically reactivates past experiences and constructs future trajectories during sequential mental navigation. Together, these findings provide new insights into how distributed brain networks give rise to the conscious experience of ongoing thought.

Chinese Academy of Sciences
http://english.cebsit.cas.cn/lab/yuqing/research/

November 11, 2026

Jan 6

January 6, 2027

Thomas Andrillon

January 6, 2027

TBC
Paris Brain Institute
https://parisbraininstitute.org/collaborators/andrillon-thomas

January 6, 2027

Feb 3

February 3, 2027

Elisabeth Parés

February 3, 2027

TBC
University College Dublin
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Elisabeth-Pares-Pujolras

February 3, 2027

Feb 17

February 17, 2027

Lu Teng

February 17, 2027

please note the different time 9am-10:30am UK time
TBC
Australian National University
https://www.lu-teng.com/

February 17, 2027

Mar 3

March 3, 2027

Arezoo Pooresmaeili

March 3, 2027

TBC
University of Southampton
https://www.southampton.ac.uk/people/62bxyp/doctor-arezoo-pooresmaeili

March 3, 2027

Mar 17

March 17, 2027

Athena Demertzi

March 17, 2027

TBC
University of Liège
https://www.uliege.be/cms/c_9054334/en/directory?uid=u205869

March 17, 2027

Apr 14

April 14, 2027

Francesca Siclari

April 14, 2027

TBC
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience
https://nin.nl/research-groups/siclari/

April 14, 2027

Apr 28

April 28, 2027

William Koller

April 28, 2027

please note the different time 3pm-4:30pm UK Time
TBC
Princeton University
https://williamnkoller.com/

April 28, 2027

May 12

May 12, 2027

Augustin Hennings

May 12, 2027

please note the different time 3pm-4:30pm UK Time
TBC
Princeton University
https://compmem.princeton.edu/augustin-c-hennings/

May 12, 2027

Jun 23

June 23, 2027

Ladislas Nalborczyk

June 23, 2027

TBC
French National Centre for Scientific Research
https://lnalborczyk.github.io/

June 23, 2027

Previous Consciousness Club Talks

To view recordings of previous talks, please click on the image of each speaker.

Featured

Oct 28

October 28, 2026

Seán Froudist-Walsh

October 28, 2026

Title: Cortex-wide computational modelling of neural dynamics during conscious access

Abstract: Recent advances in neuroimaging, anatomy and physiology make it possible to probe whole-brain neural correlates of conscious perception in unprecedented detail. However, as yet, few models in computational neuroscience have tackled the mechanisms underlying dynamic, distributed neural activity during tasks probing conscious access. In this talk I will describe our anatomy-led approach to developing multiscale models of neural activity during cognitive tasks. I will focus on the mechanisms that may produce reported neural correlates of conscious access. I will then talk about recent work investigating competition between internally- and externally-oriented cognition and a potential role of serotonin (and psilocybin) in mediating this competition.

University of Oxford & Trinity College Dublin

https://www.oxcin.ox.ac.uk/people/sean-froudist-walsh

October 28, 2026

Jun 17

June 17, 2026

CANCELLED - Aniruddh Patel

June 17, 2026

Due to unforseen illness, this event has been cancelled. Apologies for any disappointment.
Musical beat processing: cognitive, neural, and cross-species perspectives
A core feature of human music cognition is the ability to perceive a periodic underlying beat in complex rhythmic sequences. Beat perception has an intimate link to movement, scaffolding synchronized movements to music among performers and listeners. Growing evidence from cognitive neuroscience points to an important role for the motor system in beat perception, even in the absence of overt movement. Several researchers have hypothesized that auditory-motor interactions play a causal role in the brain’s ability to predict beat timing. In this presentation I will discuss ideas for the role that specific motor structures play in predicting the timing of beats (even in the absence of movement), describe some surprising aspects of cross-species findings on beat processing, and introduce the phenomenon of musical “beat deafness”, in order to spark discussion of how this deficit in beat perception and synchronization may relate to metacognition.

https://as.tufts.edu/psychology/people/faculty/aniruddh-patel

June 17, 2026