Erik Hoel Explained

Erik Hoel
Nationality:American
Workplaces:Tufts University
Columbia University
Alma Mater:Hampshire College (BA)
University of Wisconsin-Madison (PhD)
Doctoral Advisor:Giulio Tononi

Erik Hoel is an American neuroscientist,[1] neurophilosopher,[2] and fiction writer. His main areas of research are the study and philosophy of consciousness, cognition, biological function of dreams, and mathematical theories of emergence. He is noted for using information theory and causal analysis to develop mathematical models to explore and understand the basis of consciousness and dreams.[3] [4] [5] [6] Hoel holds a PhD in neuroscience from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and in 2018 was recipient of the Forbes 30 Under 30 – Science award.[7]

Career

Research

Hoel was previously a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Rafael Yuste at Columbia University[8] and a visiting fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton.[9] He is known for the idea of "causal emergence", a formal theory about how macroscales of systems can have stronger causal relationships than their underlying microscale.[10] He has also developed the overfitted brain hypothesis, on how dreams evolved as a way to prevent overfitting during learning.

Writing

The novelist Andre Dubus III tutored Hoel on writing when he was 13.[11]

Hoel has published essays in The Atlantic[12] and The Baffler,[13] among others.[14]

The Revelations

In 2021, Hoel published The Revelations, a mystery novel set at New York University concerning a fictional scholarship program that brings together eight young consciousness researchers, one of whom is murdered.[15] Publishers Weekly called it "a dizzying, impressive debut".[16]

Personal life

Hoel is married to Julia Buntaine Hoel, a fellow neuroscientist, artist, and founder of the SciArt Initiative. They have a son, born in 2021.[11]

Bibliography

Fiction

Nonfiction

Selected articles[17]

External links

Notes and References

  1. New Math Untangles the Mysterious Nature of Causality. Wired. May 19, 2021. 1059-1028.
  2. Web site: Horgan. John. Second Thoughts on Whether Self-Knowledge Is Overrated. May 19, 2021. Scientific American Blog Network.
  3. Web site: June 1, 2017. A Theory of Reality as More Than the Sum of Its Parts. May 19, 2021. Quanta Magazine.
  4. New Math Untangles the Mysterious Nature of Causality. Wired. May 21, 2021. 1059-1028.
  5. Web site: May 14, 2021. Weird dreams train us for the unexpected, says new theory. May 21, 2021. the Guardian.
  6. Web site: May 19, 2021. Weird Dreams Keep Our Brains Fit, Help Humans Cope Better with Reality, Finds Study. May 21, 2021. www.news18.com.
  7. Web site: Erik Hoel. May 19, 2021. Forbes.
  8. Web site: Can we locate cause and effect in the brain?. June 23, 2021. giving.columbia.edu.
  9. Web site: December 9, 2019. Erik Hoel – Scholars Institute for Advanced Study. June 23, 2021. www.ias.edu.
  10. Web site: Musser. George. May 4, 2017. A Theory of Consciousness Can Help Build a Theory of Everything. June 23, 2021. Nautilus.
  11. Web site: Correspondent . James Sullivan Globe . June 28 . Updated . Jabberwocky Books hatches a new novelist: the owner's son – The Boston Globe . BostonGlobe.com . May 10, 2022.
  12. Web site: Hoel. Erik P.. October 21, 2015. 'City on Fire': Will Television Ruin Fiction?. June 23, 2021. The Atlantic.
  13. Web site: May 4, 2019. Enter the Supersensorium Erik Hoel. June 23, 2021. The Baffler.
  14. Web site: April 18, 2021. Is there a scientific case for literature? A neuroscientist novelist argues yes. June 23, 2021. Salon.
  15. Web site: June 8, 2021. Bookish: Mixing Science and Fiction in a Literary Novel. June 23, 2021. Tufts Now.
  16. Web site: Fiction Book Review: The Revelations by Erik Hoel. Overlook, $27 (368p) ISBN 978-1-4197-5022-9. June 23, 2021. PublishersWeekly.com. November 2020.
  17. Web site: Science . ERIK HOEL . May 10, 2022.

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