The Quantum Mind: A New Challenge to Quantum Mechanics?

Quantum Mechanics           Credit: Wikipedia

Introduction 

The fifth Solvay International Conference held in 1927 is considered the turning point for modern Physics. The subject was ‘Electrons and Photons’, as the world’s most notable physicists, including Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr, met to discuss the newly formulated quantum theory. 17 of the 29 attendees were or became Nobel Prize winners. Einstein’s ‘Special and General Theory of Relativity’ changed our perceptions of time, space, and gravity while Bohr, Pauli, Feynman, Schrödinger, Heisenberg, and Planck’s formulation of quantum mechanics fundamentally revolutionized our understanding of the infinitesimal world of electrons, protons, and neutrons. In contrast to classical physics, quantum theory – applied in physics, mechanics and biology – describes phenomena which are often counterintuitive to human thought, hence a mind-change is required to follow one of the most important paradigm-shifts humanities has experienced so far.

Some Basics about Quantum Mechanics

Quantum mechanics defines the behaviour of molecules, atoms and subatomic particles. For example, light can behave like a particle or appear in waveform. Within the last decades several hypotheses about quantum mechanics have been verified experimentally describing phenomena such as:

Tunnelling: Particles at the quantum scale have properties of waves and light. Their exact location at any moment is described by a probabilistic wave function. As a result, particles such as electrons can, with a certain probability, traverse – or tunnel through – energy barriers. A particle that goes up against a potential barrier might cross it, even if its kinetic energy is smaller than the maximum energy applied against it by the barrier. Quantum tunnelling is applied in quantum computing and microscopy. It can also be used to measure the decay of radioactivity or nuclear fusion.

Superposition: This phenomenon of quantum behaviour can be illustrated with the double-slit experiment. In the basic version of this experiment a laser beam illuminates a plate pierced by two parallel slits while the light passing through the slits is observed on a screen behind the plate. The implication is that each quantum particle appearing as light passes simultaneously through both slits and interferes with itself. This combination of ‘both paths at once’ is defined as a state of superposition.

Entanglement: This phenomenon describes what happens when a pair of particles interact such that the quantum state of each particle of the pair cannot be described independently of the state of the other particle. Regardless of the distance between an entangled pair of particles, measuring the state of one particle reveals information about the other at the same instant, causing Einstein to label this peculiarity as “spooky action at a distance.”

Quantum Biology and the Issue of Consciousness

One of the early efforts, applying quantum theory to biological processes, was focused on consciousness and its connection to human brain functionality. In the early 1980s the British physicist and 2020 Nobel laureate Sir Roger Penrose, suggested that quantum mechanics relate to consciousness. In his 1989 book ‘The Emperor’s New Mind’, Penrose proposed that quantum effects appear in human cognition and perception. “Maybe”, says Penrose, “our ability to sustain seemingly incompatible mental states is no quirk of perception, but a real quantum effect”. Today some physicists suspect that, whether or not consciousness influences quantum mechanics, it might in fact arise because of it. They think that quantum theory might be needed to fully understand how the brain works. According to a scientific paper titled ‘Giving Up on Consciousness as the Ghost in the Machine’ Frontiers | Giving Up on Consciousness as the Ghost in the Machine | Psychology (frontiersin.org) , there is compelling evidence that the existence and proper functioning of subjective awareness and associated psychological processes is causally dependent on the interplay of different brain regions. Mental states such as our thoughts and feelings are generated by electrochemical brain activity. Without a brain or relevant brain states there are no mental states. Whatever subjective awareness is –  it has nevertheless to be fundamentally linked to physiological alterations in the central nervous system. All mental operations require the temporal precedence of physiological processes in the brain before outputs are experienced in conscious awareness. In summary, there is no evidence that mental states can exist or are capable of being experienced without a functioning brain.

Definitions Of Consciousness

The modern English term ‘consciousness’ is derived from the Latin word conscius: ‘knowing and being aware.’ Consciousness is the result of perception and understanding. It includes awareness of one’s environment and an individual’s unique thoughts, memories, feelings and sensations. One of the problems with the study of consciousness is the lack of a universally accepted definition. Descartes proposed the idea of cogito ergo sum (‘I think, therefore I am’), which suggested that the very act of thinking demonstrates the reality of one’s existence and consciousness. Today, consciousness is typically defined as awareness of oneself and the world. However, there are still debates about the different aspects of this awareness. Neuroscientists, for example, use brain-scanning technology to seek out specific neurons that might be linked to different conscious events. In 1974 the American philosopher Thomas Nagel posed the question ‘What is it like to be a bat?’ His publication became the basis of a seminal thesis on consciousness that argued why the subjective character of conscious experiences cannot be described by the neural processes of brain activity. Today, the research community generally considers two theories:

Integrated Information Theory which looks at consciousness by learning more about the physical processes that underlie our conscious experiences. The theory attempts to create a measure of the integrated information that forms consciousness. Hence, the quality of an organism’s consciousness is represented by its integration of information.

Global Workspace Theory which suggests that we have a memory from which the brain draws information creating the experience of conscious awareness. While the integrated information theory focuses more on identifying whether an organism is conscious, the global workspace theory offers a much broader approach to understanding how consciousness works.

A new Theory: The Quantum Mind

In the quest to understand consciousness, scientists and philosophers have explored numerous avenues which range from neurobiology to computer science. However, one of the most intriguing and controversial approaches comes from an unexpected direction: quantum mechanics. At first glance, the laws governing subatomic particles might seem worlds apart from human experience. Yet, as we delve deeper, surprising parallels emerge between the bizarre world of quantum physics and the equally mysterious realm of consciousness. For example, Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle states that it is  impossible to simultaneously know both the position and momentum of a particle with perfect precision. The more accurately we measure one property, the less accurately we can know the other. This fundamental limit to knowledge in the quantum world finds a fascinating parallel in our attempts to understand consciousness. Just as we cannot simultaneously pin down a particle’s position and momentum, we often find that the very act of introspection alters our mental situation we are trying to analyse. One of the most profound insights of quantum mechanics is the observer effect whereby the very act of observation can affect the system being observed. This challenges the classical notion of an objective reality independent of one’s observation. Attempting to observe our thoughts often disrupts their natural flow, much like measuring a quantum particle whose state is being changed when being observed. According to a new theory defined by Sebastian Schepis and just published by Medium Magazine, this parallel suggests that there might be fundamental limits to our ability to fully grasp the nature of consciousness through direct observation. The act of focusing attention on a thought or feeling often amplifies or alters it. Our mood can change simply by becoming aware of it, and our behaviours can shift when we know that we are being watched. Just as quantum observation plays a crucial role in determining reality at the subatomic level, self-awareness might play a similarly fundamental role in shaping our conscious experience.

Conclusion

Exploring both the quantum world and the nature of consciousness, one may find that these two great mysteries of science are more intertwined than we ever expected. The quest to understand the quantum foundations of mind is not just a scientific endeavour, but also a philosophical and existential journey that could reshape our understanding of reality and our relation to it. By accepting these quantum parallels, we open ourselves to a view of consciousness that is as unique as the quantum world itself.