Consciousness: a surprising encounter

Consciousness is an elusive phenomenon referring to the totality of one's thoughts, feelings, and impressions and to the concepts of will, volition, and mind.

Last year, I was sailing with friends, and we moored overnight at the small Ionian island of Paxos, where we were invited to visit the local aquarium. Following a couple of old signs down a narrow street, I found a large wooden shed housing more than 40 elderly glass tanks of varying sizes, each containing a specimen of local marine life. The owner, …