What Makes You “You”? An Actor + a Neuroscientist Answer | Yara Shahidi + Anil Seth | Intersections

What can acting reveal about the mystery of consciousness? Actor and producer Yara Shahidi and cognitive neuroscientist Anil Seth unpack the surprising ways that portraying different characters can reveal insights about our authentic selves — even if we’re not actually performing onstage or onscreen. Explore the intersection of consciousness and identity and discover how our brains and bodies work in tandem to form our understanding of ourselves. (This conversation is part of “TED Intersections,” a new series featuring thought-provoking conversations between experts exploring ideas at the intersection of their experience.) Watch Yara Shahidi’s talk from TED2023: Watch Anil Seth’s talk from TED2017: If you love watching TED videos like this one, become a TED Member to support our mission of spreading ideas: Follow TED! X: Instagram: Facebook: LinkedIn: TikTok: @tedtoks The TED Talks channel features talks, performances and original series from the world’s leading thinkers and doers. Subscribe to our channel for videos on Technology, Entertainment and Design — plus science, business, global issues, the arts and more. Visit to get our entire library of TED Talks, transcripts, translations, personalized talk recommendations and more. Watch more: TED’s videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy: For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at #TEDIntersections #TEDTalks #consciousness