Writes Brand of his riddle: 「I asked the question of Gregory Bateson at a point in our interview when we were lost in contemplation of the function, if any, of consciousness — self-consciousness.」
布兰德这样写道:「一次,我与格雷戈里·贝特森进行讨论,当两人都沉湎于思考意识的功能是什么,或者意识到底有没有功能(指自我意识)时,我向他提出了这个问题。」