Episode
Can the Brain Understand Itself? The Glories and the Limits of Neuroscience ~ Matthew Cobb
- Podcast
- On Humans
- Published
- Oct 17, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 3614
- Processing state
not_requested
Actions
POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/on-humans-5714769/episodes/can-the-brain-understand-itself-the-glories-and-the-limits-of-neuroscience-matthew-cobb/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/on-humans-5714769/can-the-brain-understand-itself-the-glories-and-the-limits-of-neuroscience-matthew-cobb.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.
Summary
Science has learned much about the brain. But how well do we understand this organ of the mind? Are we even close to cracking the neural code? Is a groundbreaking theory of consciousness just around the corner? In this final episode of the brain science -series, Matthew Cobb takes us on a tour of the story of neuroscience. We meet many colourful characters, but this is not just a history for history’s sake. More importantly, this is a reflection on the increasingly clear limits that brain science is coming up against — limits often left invisible behind the thirst for stories about new discoveries. Enjoy! FACT CHECKING Contrary to the precise phrasing in the episode, a handful of new psychiatric drugs have entered the market recently. The general observation remains well-supported. If you spot an error in this or other episodes, please reach out on Substack or via email . LINKS Matthew Cobb’s book is The Idea of the Brain: The Past and Future of Neuroscience For more episodes on the human brain, check OnHumans.Substack.com/Brain Want to support the show? Join the club at Patreon.com/OnHumans MENTIONS Names: Matthew Cobb | Galen | Aristotle | Andreas Vesalius | William Harvey | William Shakespeare | Queen Victoria | Karl Marx | Pierre Paul Broca | René Descartes | Eve Marder | David Marr | Francis Crick | Geoffrey Hinton | John Hopfield | Warren McCulloch | Walter Pitts | John von Neumann | Alan Turing | Kenneth Craik | Sir John Eccles | Elon Musk | Nicolaus Copernicus | Galileo Galilei Terms and concepts: recurrent laryngeal nerve | phrenology | localization of function | strokes/aphasia | Broca’s area | plasticity | hemispheric lateralization | corpus callosum | split-brain | consciousness | anesthesia (halothane, etc.) | drugs & neuromodulators |…