Vasileios Basios: from complexity to consciousness
30m | Oct 6, 2026David's guest this month is Dr Vasileios Basios, a senior researcher in the Physics of Complex Systems at the University of Brussels, with over 25 years of experience in research and coaching. His interdisciplinary work focuses on self-organisation, emergence in complex matter, complementarity and the foundations of complex systems.
Mentored by Nobel laureates Ilya Prigogine and Grégoire Nicolis, Dr Basios received his Ph.D. from the University of Brussels after studying cybernetics with John S. Nicolis. His research interests include foundations of complexity science, emergence in complex matter, nonlinear dynamics and chaos in biological information processing, computability and the logic of extended Bayesian inference. Dr Basios has participated in several research initiatives, including the European Space Agency’s Complex Matter programme and EU projects such as Pythagoras I&II and Thales I&II.
He is deeply interested in the history of scientific ideas and their role in transforming science beyond the mechanistic worldview. His work aims to bring insights from complex systems science to consciousness studies, working towards an inclusive and self-reflexive interdisciplinary science of consciousness. In 2023, his research team received the inaugural Linda G. O’Bryant Noetic Sciences Research Prize for their study on detecting deviations from random activity as indicators of nonlocal consciousness correlates beyond the brain.
Dr Basios serves in various capacities, including as a speaker for the Scientific & Medical Network after a period as its co-Chair and board member, as a member of the Galileo Commission Steering Team, and as a Trustee of the International Consciousness Research Laboratories (ICRL). By contributing to complexity and consciousness research in a variety of formats, from podcasts to books to peer-reviewed papers, he aspires to advance knowledge in this evolving field._
Imaginal Inspirations is hosted by David Lorimer, Programme Director of the Scientific and Medical Network and Chair of the Galileo Commission, an academic movement dedicated to expanding the evidence base of a science of consciousness. Imaginal cells are responsible for the metamorphosis of the caterpillar into a butterfly, which is the Greek symbol for the soul. These cells are dormant in the caterpillar but at a critical point of development they create the new form and structure which becomes the butterfly.
Do try our other Podcast, 'WISE SCIENTISTS' now available on this platform.
Works and links mentioned:
https://paricenter.com/contributor/vasileios-basios/
https://scientificandmedical.net/what-emerges-from-complexity-sciences/
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LHe9-VkAAAAJ&hl=en
https://www.abebooks.co.uk/Chaos-Information-Processing-Paradoxical-Games-Legacy/31575946970/bd
Production: Martin Redfern https://www.beaconhillbroadcast.com/
Artwork: Amber Haas
Music: Life is a River, by Magnus Moone
