Driving Fundamental Research & Impact
This year, we saw fundamental breakthroughs that show how long-view research can drive seismic impact: from redefining consciousness, to safeguarding biodiversity, to creating new tools for sustainable energy and climate resilience.
SPOTLIGHT: Consciousness, Reimagined
As we continue to understand human consciousness and as AI systems and synthetic life forms grow more complex, knowing who or what is conscious has never been more important. That’s why researchers in CIFAR’s Brain, Mind & Consciousness program launched a global study to redefine how we detect consciousness across humans, animals, machines and organoids. Their work identifies key failures in current tests and proposes a new framework to guide science, ethics and policy. The study included Co-Directors Tim Bayne (Monash University, Australia), Liad Mudrik (Tel Aviv University, Israel) and Anil Seth (University of Sussex, United Kingdom), among other program members.
The impact of fundamental research can be felt across disciplines and scales.
Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities program members Arturo Casadevall, Advisor, and Iliyan D. Iliev at a meeting in Toronto. The program is driving antifungal innovation.
How does wildfire smoke shape early childhood development? What do bat vaccines have to do with human babies’ health? Read about these and other recent research breakthroughs.