What is this all about?

Cognitive Wonderland is a newsletter about “cognitive wonder”, the feeling of the world opening up as we learn some new way of thinking about the universe.

Yeah, the name is cheesy. But it also captures something deep about what I want to do with this newsletter. All my life, I’ve loved “escaping” to my own little world and thinking through how reality really is. This newsletter is my attempt to better explore that little world, and share it with others in the hope of finding kindred spirits.

Expect some science, philosophy, and science fiction geekiness, with a special interest in neuroscience and philosophy of mind.

Who are you?

I’m Tommy. I’m particularly interested in the cognitive sciences and philosophy of mind, and science fiction that touches on these topics.

I guess I can also claim to be some sort of expert in at least some of these. I have a PhD in neuroscience (with postdoc training at Harvard), a Master’s in philosophy, and have published a few science fiction stories in various paying venues. My day job is as a data scientist and I have an undergrad degree in computer science, so I know some math/computer stuff too.

Here’s a picture of me posing with some flowers on my wedding day.

Why subscribe?

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