Bigelow Institute for Consciousness Studies

The 2021 BICS Essay Contest Runners-Up

There was a very high standard shown in a large number of essays that did not quite achieve the threshold for the top three winners. Again, members of the public may disagree with the awarding of some of the eleven winners whose essays are published below. Indeed, some people may argue that particular winners of the $50,000 prizes actually deserve to have won one of the top three prizes. These discussions are expected and very healthy, because they indicate the substantial number of exceptional essays that were submitted to BICS. The impartial judges came to their decision without any influence from the outside and this decision was a very difficult one that culminated over four months of very intense discussions, debate and extensive dialog.