I am a research assistant professor at the Polish Academy of Sciences, with a background in psychology and philosophy. My earlier work examined interactions between bodily and exteroceptive modalities in shaping perceptual experience. Currently, I develop a geometric framework modeling the stream of consciousness as a trajectory through experiential state space – exploring how the structure of transitions relates to the sense of self and time, whose distortions are a hallmark of altered states of consciousness. Two empirical lines develop in parallel with the framework: (i) deriving the state space bottom-up from dissimilarity ratings between altered states; (ii) investigating parametrically varied VR-simulated hallucinations – their subjective and physiological effects – as a non-pharmacological route to controlled sequences of altered experience. I have held research stays at the Max Planck Institute, Sussex Centre for Consciousness Science, and Hokkaido University, and teach consciousness science and experimental psychology at the University of Warsaw.
Research
Framework. I am developing a geometric model that treats the stream of consciousness as a trajectory through a multidimensional state space. The central question is how sequences of changing experiences shape the sense of self and time. These relationships remain difficult to operationalise, and their radical distortions are a hallmark of altered states of consciousness and dissociative states. I pursue the model along two empirical lines.
Mapping the space of conscious states. The first line reconstructs the state space from dissimilarity ratings between experiences induced by different psychoactive substances, and from first-person reports – including reports of psychiatric disorders and neurological conditions – analysed with natural language processing methods.
VR-simulated hallucinations. The second line uses the VR Hallucination Machine, a platform in which machine-learning algorithms distort what the participant sees and evoke hallucination-like experiences. The type and intensity of the distortions are under experimental control, which makes it possible to arrange the induced states – more or less distant from everyday experience – into planned sequences. These studies combine time-perception measures, automated analysis of free descriptions of the state, and physiological indices (eye-tracking and electrocardiography).
Earlier work. My earlier research concerned multisensory integration: the influence of body movement on visual experience, of touch and proprioception on the sense of body ownership, and of cardiac activity on somatosensory and visual perception. Across these studies I use psychophysical methods and immersive virtual reality environments.
Collaborations. I work with researchers at the Sussex Centre for Consciousness Science, Hokkaido University and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
Code and data for published studies are openly available – see Code & data.
Teaching
University of Warsaw: Consciousness Science: Phenomena and Mechanisms (seminar) and Experimental Psychology (classes).