Part 3/9:
The first day of the conference set the stage for a revealing dialogue. Two well-known philosophers began with lengthy presentations, but it was David Chalmers—a less recognized figure at the time—who captured the audience's attention. His spirited discussion of the "hard problem" of consciousness illuminated the distinctions between simple cognitive functions (or "easy problems") like memory and attention, versus the more profound query of how subjective experiences arise. This pivotal moment galvanized a new wave of interest in consciousness studies.