Like you Jake my science background i s based on the practical, so I find these "conceptual mathematical" like membranes, foam and multiple universes very difficult to get my head round. To me they are devices to balance equations, and true as they might be I like to see more tangible evidence. That is not to say I'm not fascinated by them purely as thought exercises.
Rev, books on consciousness might include Susan Blakemore and Rupert Sheldrake.