A World Appears
A World Appears by Michael Pollanby Michael Pollan
Shares rank 129 of 152 nonfiction books by recommenders
Readers praise its nuanced, well-researched survey of consciousness researchers' views and engaging footnotes. Common caveat: it is challenging and can leave readers more confused.
Readers praise its nuanced, well-researched survey of consciousness researchers' views and engaging footnotes. Common caveat: it is challenging and can leave readers more confused.
3 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 2
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 67%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 2 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Nuanced, well-researched take on consciousness
“Michael Pollan's "A World Appears" is a much more interesting and nuanced take. Very much recommended.”
Comment from 18 May 2026 in “There Is No 'Hard Problem of Consciousness'” “entirely devoted to his exploration of consciousness researchers' POVs on this exact topic”
Comment from 4 Jun 2026 in “"They're made out of weights"” Engaging footnotes, hard to put down
“As usual, this author's footnotes keep you thinking”
Comment from 20 Apr 2026 in “A Pascal's Wager for AI Doomers” “his consumable pages are difficult to stop turning”
Comment from 28 Feb 2026 in “Book Review: 'A World Appears,' by Michael Pollan”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Challenging, leaves readers more confused
“The entire book, just like existance, has been incredibly challenging.”
Comment from 26 Apr 2026 in “An amateur just solved a 60-year-old math problem–by asking AI” “now I understand myself even less”
Comment from 24 Jun 2026 in “Why big AI labs are hiring so many philosophers”
Other nonfiction books people recommend
The four most recommended other nonfiction books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Cuckoo's Eggby Clifford Stoll | 40 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Amusing Ourselves to Deathby Neil Postman | 36 | 0 | 100% | 9 | 1 yr3 owners | Approved |
| The Anxious Generationby Jonathan Haidt | 24 | 12 | 67% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Bullshit Jobsby David Graeber | 20 | 12 | 63% | 8 | — | — |
| A World Appearsby Michael PollanThis page | 2 | 1 | 67% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
All 7 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“For further reading, consider the excellent”
“now I understand myself even less”
“entirely devoted to his exploration of consciousness researchers' POVs on this exact topic”
“Michael Pollan's "A World Appears" is a much more interesting and nuanced take. Very much recommended.”
“The entire book, just like existance, has been incredibly challenging.”
“As usual, this author's footnotes keep you thinking”
“his consumable pages are difficult to stop turning”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.