In this episode, Dr. Jonas Koppel and I discuss the problem of belief change and resistance to belief change, and the work he and his co-author, Sarah Gimble, did in 2016 on the neural correlates of maintaining one's political beliefs in the face of counter evidence. This is the first installment in a larger series Jonas is doing with the Waking Up App, which focuses on the science of consciousness, identity, empathy, and social relationships. In part 1 of this conversation, Jonas and I talk about our work on the nature of belief and belief change resistance, and how it relates to the illusory truth effect and the failures of replication in this area of research. In part 2 of this series, we discuss the cognitive neuroscientist Jonas Kaplan's research on the role of consciousness and identity in shaping our sense of self, and his work on how the brain processes stories and beliefs and values. This episode is part 1 in a series of a larger conversation Jonas has been doing with me and my collaborator, Anil Seth, on the topic of identity and consciousness in the brain. We cover things like: Why do we have a collective unconscious? What does it have to do with identity? Why does it matter? How does it affect our perception of the world? What is it really about? And why is it important to have a sense of who we are? and what does it really mean and why it s important to understand it? We discuss the role in the world How can we learn from it And how it affects us? Can it help us learn and practice Is it possible to change the world ? Does it really affect us is it a problem can it be taught why it matters what it s really important how it s useful should we learn who it s good ? and so on? Is there any value does it and can it be or Can we are , and in the of & so much more? , and so much we ll . Jonas shares his thoughts on identity and how we can joins me in this conversation - and more! Join us in the Making Sense Podcast