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Radio 4,3 mins

What’s the closest thing to alien life on Earth?

Radio 4 in Four

Available for over a year

The evolution of the human brain is one of the wonders of nature, but the philosopher of science Peter Godfrey-Smith asks what if intelligent life on Earth evolved not once, but twice? He wonders how the octopus - a solitary creature - became so smart. He traces the story from single-celled organism 3.8 billion years ago to the development of cephalopod consciousness, casting new light on the octopus mind. Kirsty Wark and psychiatrist Dr Tammy Burmeister discuss the octopus. First broadcast on Start the Week, 11 June 2018.

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