Maxim Gorbachev
mgorbachev.bsky.social
Maxim Gorbachev
@mgorbachev.bsky.social
PhD in philosophy, working on philosophy of consciousness, illusionism; a little bit of neuroscience and ai
Do you know this is your hand or you are sure it is?
November 14, 2025 at 12:34 PM
This is map of a fruit-fly brain neurons. Imagine a human brain complexity. Is there still anything in your experience you think cannot be explained without postulating something nonphysical?
November 13, 2025 at 11:22 AM
The more I look at @petemandik.bsky.social‘s comics (dailynous.com/tag/mind-chu...) the more I want to watch a cartoon visualized by him.
Mind Chunks - Daily Nous
dailynous.com
November 13, 2025 at 4:50 AM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
Pete and I discuss Jonathan Birch's book on sentience. Featuring a special guest appearance by Indi! www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9ue...
@birchlse.bsky.social
6: Animal consciousness
YouTube video by Keith Frankish
www.youtube.com
November 4, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
Join us in 60 minutes! It'll be *bona* (despite my lack of riah)
The Persuaders live tomorrow at 1pm EDT / 6pm BST! Keith and Pete will persuade you to read their essays on human and machine consciousness for @whatisitliketobeaphilosopher.com's new collection *Too Weird to Believe, Too Plausible to Deny* www.youtube.com/live/5ow4315...
@petemandik.bsky.social
5: Our weird beliefs about consciousness
YouTube video by Keith Frankish
www.youtube.com
October 21, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
New in draft with Susan Schneider, David Sahner, Robert Lawrence Kuhn & Mark Bailey - a primer on central ideas and concepts in the AI consciousness debate. If you're looking for a toehold in the sea of jargon, this might help.

philpapers.org/rec/SCHIAC-22
Susan Schneider, David Sahner, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Eric Schwitzgebel & Mark Bailey, Is AI Conscious? A Primer on the Myths and Confusions Driving the Debate - PhilPapers
Artificial intelligence is sparking unprecedented claims about machine minds — but are today’s systems really conscious? In this primer, we disentangle the myths, misconceptions, and confusions fuelin...
philpapers.org
October 13, 2025 at 11:39 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
Starting in under an hour! Some preparatory reading here petemandik.substack.com/p/you-dont-k...
September 2, 2025 at 4:06 PM
What’s your answer to the question “Why do we need to study philosophy?”?
I realized that I rather try to defend philosophy than to explain why it’s important.
September 1, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
The Persuaders, Episode 2. Pete tries to persuade us that all conscious content is conceptual. www.youtube.com/live/S7FjpEH...
@petemandik.bsky.social
The Persuaders. Episode 2: Perceptual content
YouTube video by Keith Frankish
www.youtube.com
August 19, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
The Persuaders: Overture - YouTube www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T77...
The Persuaders: Overture
YouTube video by Keith Frankish
www.youtube.com
August 12, 2025 at 7:27 PM
I was told today that it is possible to rationally and simultaneously claim “p” and “I don’t believe p” without changing the meaning of p in one of these. (So, an assumption that I face an illusion of p is not the case).
I have no idea how it could be possible. Does anyone?
August 11, 2025 at 5:45 PM
July 31, 2025 at 8:58 PM
I often meet two types of people: 1) claim epistemological characteristics of phenomenal consciousness are compatible with physicalism and 2) claim phenomenal consciousness doesn’t consist of those characteristics.
I don’t think one can coherently be the former. The latter use “PC”inappropriate.
July 31, 2025 at 12:10 PM
There are two buttons: blue and red.

If 50% of people press the blue button, everyone will survive.

If you press the red button, you are guaranteed to survive, but those who pressed the blue button will die if the blue button does not reach 50%.

What would you choose?
July 25, 2025 at 6:34 AM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
Evidence that octopuses are subject to the rubber hand illusion -- suggesting, I guess, that they have an integrated sense of self www.cell.com/current-biol...
Rubber arm illusion in octopus
The feeling of a body as belonging to oneself is called the sense of body ownership and the centerpiece of conscious experience. Kawashima and Ikeda investigated the sense of body ownership in an octo...
www.cell.com
July 24, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Another drink?
(This distinguished lady is Margo)
July 20, 2025 at 12:33 PM
1/2 Continuing my work on Humphrey’s “Redder than red” translation. There are at least two strategies to reject phenomenal realism: denying existence of phenomenality or redefining it in physicalist terms. I guess, Nicholas takes the latter. But he still sticks to such properties as privacy…
July 17, 2025 at 9:29 AM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
I have a new short paper out today, commenting on Walter Veit's (excellent) 2023 book on animal consciousness. Open access. doi.org/10.1177/1059...
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doi.org
July 15, 2025 at 2:47 PM
I’m working on the translation of Nick Humphrey’s paper (below). I recommend this one to those who find illusionism too radical. Humphrey employs a realist language to convey quite similar ideas. If you find surrealism plausible, there’s nothing stopping you from adopting an illusionist perspective.
Redder than Red Illusionism or Phenomenal Surrealism?: Ingenta Connect
www.ingentaconnect.com
July 10, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
Dave Chalmers and the best argument for dualism #ASSC28
July 9, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Reposted by Maxim Gorbachev
July 8, 2025 at 2:58 PM
I’ve participated in ICCS conference on AI and sentience. Many great people, many great talks. I’m glad I was there! Thanks to ICCS and @mariakasmirli.bsky.social for perfect organization!
I was also very happy to see my friend and teacher @keithfrankish.bsky.social
See everyone next year!
July 8, 2025 at 12:06 PM