author
John Cunningham Lilly
1915–2001
Best known for inventing the sensory deprivation tank and for his unusual experiments in dolphin communication, this American physician and writer spent his career pushing at the edges of science and consciousness. His work made him a fascinating and controversial figure in twentieth-century thought.
1 Audiobook
The Dolphin in History
by Ashley Montagu, John Cunningham Lilly
About the author
Born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1915, John C. Lilly trained as a physician and neuroscientist before becoming widely known for his research on the brain, consciousness, and communication. He worked in medicine and neurophysiology, but his public reputation grew from his talent for asking bold questions that many other researchers avoided.
Lilly is especially remembered for developing the isolation, or sensory deprivation, tank in the 1950s and for his efforts to study communication between humans and dolphins. These projects brought him both admiration and criticism: admirers saw a fearless original thinker, while critics questioned the scientific strength of some of his later ideas and methods.
He also wrote extensively about consciousness, self-experimentation, and the limits of ordinary perception, becoming an important influence on later countercultural and New Age circles. Even when readers disagree with him, his books still stand out for their curiosity, ambition, and willingness to explore the far edges of the human mind.