Resources

ASEF: Episode #40 (EN): Free Energy Principle with Karl Friston: Mathematical Modeling of Consciousness

Author: Tanya Janko

June 10, 2025

Summary

In this episode, Karl Friston unpacks the Free Energy Principle (https://www.nature.com/articles/nrn2787), a unifying theory explaining how the brain minimizes surprise by constantly predicting and updating its model of the world. 

We explore how this principle sheds light on perception, consciousness, and even psychiatric conditions like schizophrenia. 

Karl also shares how his journey took him from psychiatry to neuroscience, driven by a passion for applying math and physics to deepen understanding of the brain.