How can we define consciousness and establish who or what possess it? Martin Monti shares his work including research into developing a method of answering the question of whether some comatose patients can demonstrate consciousness.

Martin M. Monti has been an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery at UCLA since 2011. Prior to moving to UCLA, he obtained his PhD in Psychology and Neuroscience from Princeton University and was a Research Scientist at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge UK. His research addresses two fundamental questions concerning some of the most characterizing aspects of “being human”: ‘what is consciousness, and why do we lose it (and sometimes recover it) after severe brain injuries?’ and ‘what is the relationship between language and thought?’

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx