Rephonic
Artwork for The Giants Shoulder

The Giants Shoulder

Evan McGloughlin
Consciousness
Neuroscience
Mental Health
Artificial Intelligence
Aphantasia
Psychedelics
Memory
Depression
Philosophy Of Mind
Evolutionary Biology
Psychopathy
Cognition
PTSD
Creativity
ADHD
Conscious Agent Theory
Evolution
Quantum Mechanics
Dopamine
Consciousness Research

A Neuroscience podcast. Each week I talk with experts on a range of topics from consciousness and neuroplasticity to evolution and everything in between. I have a particular interest in consciousness and understanding our inner subjective conscious experience. Evan has a Neuroscience degree from Trinity College Dublin and is the co-founder of 2 (failed) edtech startups. He is a professional tennis... more

PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes124Founded2 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
Life SciencesScience

Listen to this Podcast

Artwork for The Giants Shoulder

Latest Episodes

Get A Full Breakdown Of Your Own Conscious Inner Experience (100% Free): www.skool.com/the-giants-shoulder-6526/about

Matthias Michel is an MIT philosopher and co-founder of the MIT Consciousness Club who has developed one of the most provoc... more

YouTube

Dr. Alfredo Spagna is a Cognitive Neuroscientist at Columbia University who discovered the Fusiform Imagery Node — the brain region that activates every time you imagine anything. But when he scanned people with aphantasia using an ultra-high-field 7... more

YouTube

Bryan L. Roth is a drug receptor scientist who solved the crystal structure of LSD inside a serotonin receptor and took $26.9 million from DARPA to build a non-hallucinogenic psychedelic — a compound that hits the same receptor as psilocybin, produce... more

YouTube

Andrés Gómez Emilsson runs research at the Qualia Research Institute and thinks consciousness has a literal mathematical shape. We walk through the six geometric levels of DMT, why phenomenal space goes hyperbolic at high doses, why bad trips are com... more

YouTube

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Accepts Sponsors
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

Recent Guests

Bryan Roth
Pharmacologist and psychedelic research pioneer
Independent researcher / Professor of Pharmacology (as discussed in episode)
Episode: #116 Meet The World’s Greatest Psychedelic Receptor Scientist
Andrés Gómez Emilsson
Director of the Qualia Research Institute, consciousness mathematician
Qualia Research Institute (QRI)
Episode: #115 Consciousness Expert Explains The 6 Levels Of The DMT Experience
Andrew Gallimore
Neurobiologist and pharmacologist specializing in consciousness and DMT
Noonautics; collaboration with Rick Strassman in DMT research
Episode: #114 No.1 DMT Neurobiologist: Alien Worlds, DMT Entity Encounters, Attractor States and Consciousness
Matt Hill
Neuroscience researcher specializing in the endocannabinoid system
Episode: #113 - Meet The Neuroscientist Decoding Your Bodies Cannabis System
Dr. Elizabeth Margulis
Music cognition researcher and professor at Princeton University
Princeton University
Episode: #112 - No. 1 Music Neuroscientist: How Music Hijacks Our Collective Unconscious, Emotion and Imagination
Tim Maudlin
Philosopher of physics, NYU
New York University
Episode: #111 - Tim Maudlin: Consciousness, Turing Machines, Problems with Quantum Mechanics and Ai
György Buzsáki
World-renowned neuroscientist whose work redefines memory, time, and brain rhythms
New York University (neuroscience researcher)
Episode: #110 - Meet the Neuroscientist Who Discovered That Waves Produce Memory, Spacetime and Consciousness
Wendy Suzuki
Neuroscientist focused on hippocampus and memory
New York University (NYU)
Episode: #109 Dr Wendy Suzuki: How The Hippocampus Weaves Your Memories Into Consciousness
David Nichols
Renowned psychedelic chemist and founder of the Heffter Research Institute
Purdue University (former), Heffter Research Institute (founder)
Episode: #108 - Meet The Greatest Living Psychedelic Scientist You've Never Heard Of

Host

Evan
Host of the show; neuroscience background; co-founder in startup space.

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars from 33 ratings
  • Fascinating!

    Brilliant and insightful. This is my go-to podcast to keep my brain from atrophying.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Herbert Hoover too tired
    United Statesa year ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Engaging, thought-provoking conversations that push beyond standard science coverage.
Strong emphasis on neuroscience and consciousness appeals to researchers and educated listeners.
The show's curiosity about controversial topics is refreshing and adds credibility.
High-quality guests and rigorous exploration of big questions.
Accessible yet deeply technical at times, which keeps it intellectually rewarding.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

#115 Consciousness Expert Explains The 6 Levels Of The DMT Experience
Q: What is the practical takeaway for researchers and practitioners interested in these ideas?
A practical takeaway is to explore mathematical and computational models that capture the structure of subjective experience, using concepts like hypergraphs, symmetry groups, and graph-theoretic oscillatory modes. The discussion encourages designing experiments that test symmetry-feature correlations with valence, and to consider the brain's micro-localized pockets that may implement these experiences rather than assuming the whole brain is the substrate.
#115 Consciousness Expert Explains The 6 Levels Of The DMT Experience
Q: How does predictive processing relate to the symmetry framework, and can these ideas be integrated with Friston's Free Energy Principle?
The speakers treat the Free Energy Principle as a foundational constraint that helps describe how organisms minimize prediction error and internal complexity. They argue predictive processing is compatible but not sufficient on its own to explain phenomenology, because you also need a mechanism for binding disparate information into a unified moment of experience. They propose that symmetry and hypergraph-based representations could provide the binding mechanism that complements free-energy approaches, suggesting an integrated framework.
#115 Consciousness Expert Explains The 6 Levels Of The DMT Experience
Q: What do you think symmetry looks like in the brain, and is there experimental evidence that links symmetry to positive phenomenology?
There is a broad claim that symmetry in neural dynamics correlates with positive phenomenology, supported by physiological data and several lines of evidence such as biorhythm coherence and harmonic brain modes. The idea is not that any symmetry is good, but that compatible symmetries produce a unified, low-stress state in the brain and body, whereas incompatible symmetries create internal conflict and stress. Experimental mapping remains ongoing, with visualization work and fMRI studies aiming to identify which brain regions and oscillatory modes align with symmetric perceptual structures.
#111 - Tim Maudlin: Consciousness, Turing Machines, Problems with Quantum Mechanics and Ai
Q: What is the main argument for computationalism at the moment in light of the brain and consciousness debate?
The guest explains that while many in AI focus on whether systems can produce intelligent outputs, the core critique is that computational structure alone cannot capture conscious experience; even if a system behaves intelligently, it does not imply it is conscious, and the strongest current arguments for computation as sufficient fail under counterfactual considerations and the need for a grounding in physical processes beyond abstract computation.
#112 - No. 1 Music Neuroscientist: How Music Hijacks Our Collective Unconscious, Emotion and Imagination
Q: Have you thought about the intersection of music with psychedelics and how they might interact in research or therapy?
There is substantial interest in how psychedelics and music interact, including music's role in therapy and healing during psychedelic sessions, and the guest notes that music can shape the experience and potentially work synergistically with psychedelics, a topic she sees as increasingly explored in research and clinical practice.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About The Giants Shoulder

What is The Giants Shoulder about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A thought-provoking neuroscience-focused interview show that regularly blends science with philosophy and technology. Episodes feature leading researchers and thinkers exploring consciousness, perception, biology, and the nature of reality, often connecting deep theoretical ideas to practical implications in AI, medicine, and cognition. The conversations tend to be wide-ranging and accessible, with a penchant for challenging conventional wisdom and examining how multiple disciplines intersect to illuminate the mysteries of the mind and life. A notable strength is the willingness to entertain provocative hypotheses—from panpsychism to living robots—while maintaining rigorous scrutiny of evidence, making it appealing to listeners who enjoy bi... more

Where can I find podcast stats for The Giants Shoulder?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for The Giants Shoulder. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to The Giants Shoulder and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does The Giants Shoulder get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for three million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for The Giants Shoulder, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for The Giants Shoulder?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for The Giants Shoulder, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does The Giants Shoulder have?

To see how many followers or subscribers The Giants Shoulder has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to The Giants Shoulder?

These podcasts share a similar audience with The Giants Shoulder:

1. Theories of Everything with Curt Jaimungal
2. The Michael Shermer Show
3. THIRD EYE DROPS
4. The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
5. Lex Fridman Podcast

How many episodes of The Giants Shoulder are there?

The Giants Shoulder launched 2 years ago and published 124 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact The Giants Shoulder?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for The Giants Shoulder?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for The Giants Shoulder from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.

How do I access podcast episode transcripts for The Giants Shoulder?

Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of The Giants Shoulder. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on The Giants Shoulder?

Recent guests on The Giants Shoulder include:

1. Bryan Roth
2. Andrés Gómez Emilsson
3. Andrew Gallimore
4. Matt Hill
5. Dr. Elizabeth Margulis
6. Tim Maudlin
7. György Buzsáki
8. Wendy Suzuki

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

Find and pitch the right podcasts

We help savvy brands, marketers and PR professionals to find the right podcasts for any topic or niche. Get the data and contacts you need to pitch podcasts at scale and turn listeners into customers.
Try it free for 7 days