Other Minds: The Octopus, The Sea, — And The Deep...

Personal anecdotes from diving; the social interactions at Octopolis.

Unlike humans, whose neurons are centralized in a brain, an octopus’s nervous system is distributed . Most of its 500 million neurons are in its arms, which can touch, taste, and act independently of the central brain—functioning like "semi-autonomous agents". Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep...

(2016), Australian philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith explores the evolution of intelligence through a unique lens: the Personal anecdotes from diving; the social interactions at

Godfrey-Smith traces consciousness back to the basic need for internal coordination . As multicellular organisms became more complex, they needed a way to distinguish between changes in the world and changes caused by their own movement. Cephalopods: Leads to octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish

The book's central premise is that high-level intelligence evolved at least on Earth: Vertebrates: Leads to humans, mammals, and birds. Cephalopods: Leads to octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish.

In Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness