The measurement problem in quantum mechanics, the hard problem of consciousness, and the challenge of developing general AI are not separate issues. Absorbing that message—understanding its potentially enormous leverage for a revolution in human understanding—is enough to justify picking up George Musser’s Putting Ourselves Back Into the Equation. The book is readable, which is no easy feat given the abstractness of the topics, and, while Musser does give pride of place to a few researchers—most notably Giuliani Tononi, of integrated information theory, and Carlo Rovelli, of relational quantum mechanics—his survey of the field is balanced and wide-ranging. The book could admittedly be more tightly organized. The connections between the various subtopics—neural networks, emergence, quantum theories of consciousness,etc.—are sometimes awkward. But Musser is writing at the very edge of science, philosophy, and ultimately culture, and all is a swirling fog in this place, with hints of a chasm lurking somewhere near us. Bridging the chasm almost certainly requires novel linkages between scientific disciplines, and maybe even a third way between art and science. What marvelous times! 7
Musser, George. Putting Ourselves Back in the Equation. Farrar, , 2023. Reviewed August 16, 2025.