ABC Listen, podcasts, radio, news, music and more.

The human brain has been studied for thousands of years.

Yet for all the progress we've made, from the earliest written records of how to treat the brain in ancient Egypt

through to the blossoming

field of neuroscience over recent decades, a whole heap of mysteries remain. And we explored a

few of those mysteries with three brilliant brains last month at the World Science Festival, Brisbane,

in a live show for All in the Mind.

It's so lovely to be here with you all today to discuss the most fascinating 1.3 kilos of stuff on the planet.

So in this recording of our show, you're going to hear from Brisbane-based neurosurgeon Alex Kaufman

on the weird and wonderful

experience of operating on patients' brains while they're awake.

You'll also hear from Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Behavior at the University

of Technology Sydney, Kylie Seymour, who works on neurotechnology and consciousness.

And you're going to hear from Neuroscientist and Research Fellow at Monash University,

Ariel Zelaznikov Johnston, who investigates the neuroscience behind brain preservation,

consciousness and death.

This is All In The Mind. I'm Sana Khadar.

Today, dissecting the brain from our live show at the World Science Festival,

Brisbane.

All right, I'm going to go ahead and declare the brain our most important organ.

Other specialties might disagree, but Alex, you are a brain surgeon, so I reckon you would agree.

I'm unequivocally on the side that the brain is the most important, by far.

...