I went into neuroscience because I wanted to understand why we are the way we are. Especially if and how Intelligence and Consciousness are inter-related. With the recent rise of AI and whether or not at some point in the future machines would become conscious, I was reminded of Roger Penrose's theory of the mind,in particular that consciousness was not only a algorithmic function but that quantum superposition is a contributing factor. Could it happen that AI can become hyper-intelligent but will forever remain "non-conscious"? What would be the implications of such a new form of intelligence? An interesting review about this: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2022.869935/full: "Consciousness, Cognition and the Neuronal Cytoskeleton – A New Paradigm Needed in Neuroscience"

"To get good government, you must have good people in charge of government. ...If a people have lost faith completely in their democratic institutions because they cannot find people of caliber to run them, however good that system is, perishes." Lee Kuan Yew. wonder how many iterations of bad people in charge an otherwise good system can survive? Can one bad president or chancellor bring everything down or is it a slower process?