9 Mind-Bending Studies That Suggest Consciousness Isn’t What You Think (P)

Consciousness is often assumed to be the command centre of the mind -- the place where decisions are made and reality is experienced as it truly is.

But a growing body of research suggests something far stranger, and scientists are beginning to question how much control and awareness we actually have.

Even basic features of experience -- inner speech, mental imagery, and the sense of self -- vary dramatically between individuals, hinting that consciousness may be far less uniform, and far less reliable, than it feels.

Here are nine studies that question what consciousness is, when it begins and how much of it we truly experience at all.