How do our brains generate consciousness? We take it for granted that the brain makes being alive feel the way it does, but there’s no reason why it should.The brain is made of the same biological ingredients as the rest of the body, and yet somehow it manages to generate the indescribable phenomenon of consciousness. Consciousness is far more than just being able to imagine; it’s a whole extra dimension. Susan Greenfield explains why she believes that the existence of a private world of experiences and feelings, is actually more extraordinary than the fact that living things evolved at all. She explores how we are finally taking the first steps towards understanding this tantalising paradox, and the implications for our view of ourselves as something more than complex machines.