Essence of Quantum Mechanics :
What cannot be calculated, cannot be measured. What can be calculated, can be measured. And most importantly, not everything can be calculated.
Calculation :
Write a mathematical equation to predict the future state of a system using information about the present and past history. Systems for which this is possible are henceforth referred to as physical systems.
Measurement :
Take a classical system with a calibrated scale. Make it interact with a quantum/classical system, and note the change in reading.
Essence of Physical Science :
This change of reading of a classical calibrated apparatus in a measurement is expected to agree with the theoretical calculation.
Q : Could there be systems whose future state cannot be predicted based on present and past history? Or, in other words, what are the special characteristics of a system which enable it to be modelled theoretically?
A : A system which does not have any desire to change its future destiny, and which is not under the influence of any entity with desires, can be modelled mathematically.
Q : What is the cause and source of desire?
A : From attachment to status quo and resistance to change. Desire perhaps arises from the friction between the static state of Purusha and the ever dynamic nature of Prakriti. It is essentially a boundary layer phenomenon. This boundary is called the mind, and is essentially a part of Prakriti.
Q : Is it possible for the desire of the mind to act upon the matter of the brain to achieve its intended objective? If yes, how does it happen?
A : Decision making is a common experience of almost all humans, and so at some level it makes sense to say that the mind does have a causal influence on the brain. There are only two ways by which mind can act upon the brain. One is by changing the mathematical laws which govern physical matter. Another is by exploiting loopholes in the physical laws.
Q : Do we have any evidence for the ability of the mind to change physical laws?
A : Scientific evidence is not available, but Patanjali Yoga Sutras talk of this possibility through attainment of several siddhis by performing intense and appropriate sadhana. Almost all Yogis of the Vedantic tradition attest to this possibility, and many claim to have even achieved these powers.
Q : What about exploiting loopholes in physical laws? Do such loopholes exist? And do we have evidence for their exploitation by the mind?
A : An influence of the mind over brain to influence its outcome would essentially mean that the mind is able to supply/extract extra energy into/from the physical system of the brain. Without a change in the energy of the brain, no influence is possible. Now, conservation of energy in physical systems is a central dogma of physics, but in certain quantum processes its not clear if this law truly holds.
Conservation of energy in quantum processes
In quantum mechanics, there is an energy-time uncertainty relation which essentially says that for interactions between two systems, a product of the uncertainty in the amount of energy exchanged and the time of interaction is always larger than a certain minimum value.
Consider a hydrogen atom, A, in the first excited state placed at a small distance from another hydrogen atom, B, in the ground state. Now, when A drops down to the ground state, it emits a photon which must have an uncertainty in its energy/frequency due to the energy-time uncertainty relation. And when this photon is absorbed by the other atom, B, the energy transferred also much have an uncertainty by the same principle. So how do we account for conservation of energy, when both the processes of emission and absorption have an inherent uncertainty in them? It seems quite possible that there are small violations of energy conservation in each experiment, and that conservation works only on average over many experiments. And perhaps, the mind exploits this loophole in the brain to provide or extract energy from the physical brain system, thereby changing its outcome.
Now, one may say that this energy change is very small, and so unlikely to have any significant impact on the outcomes. However, there are chaotic systems which are very sensitive to initial conditions, and if the brain also employs such chaotic states (or, critical instabilities), then it is quite possible for small changes in brain energy to have a significant impact on the outcomes.
1. This whole universe is an interplay of energy and matter.
ReplyDelete2. Some aspects of energy are measurable (P) and others are immeasurable (NP).
3. There is exchange of energy, and hence causal influence, between the P and NP aspects.
4. Due to (3) above, there must be violation of energy conservation in P domain.
5. Energy conservation of P+NP is a meaningless concept, since by definition, the energy of NP cannot be measured.
Energy is simply the conjugate of time, like momentum is the conjugate of position. In whichever domain there is change w.r.t. time, there has to be an associated energy. And we know that mental states change with time.
And as far as we know, time is the same in P and NP. So, there is no reason to believe the associated energies to be different. Just that they are not measurable in the NP domain. Why that is so is another important question worth pondering on!
Neutrinos seem to be super interesting particles/entities! Here are some important facts from Wiki:
ReplyDelete1. Bohr had proposed that conservation of energy is only statistically valid, before neutrinos were proposed to explain beta decay spectrum. May be we should revisit Bohr's proposal?
2. Neutrinos are emitted in a superposition of three flavours, which have varying masses. How is then energy conserved in these experiments?
3. Neutrinos have a tiny mass, but are produced in such large numbers, that they are likely to interact gravitationally with matter. And we know that conservation of energy breaks down when gravity is taken into account.
4. Neutrinos are considered to be likely candidates for hot dark matter!
5. Lot of theories of quantum gravity (including string theory) allow for spontaneous violation of Lorerntz invariance, which could allow faster than light neutrinos!
Neutrino should perhaps not be considered an elementary particle like an electron:
https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/19424/is-mass-an-observable-in-quantum-mechanics
Here are some interesting facts about neutrino oscillation from wiki:
ReplyDelete1. In nuclear beta decay, muon decay, pion decay, and kaon decay, when a neutrino and a charged lepton are emitted, the charged lepton is emitted in incoherent mass eigenstates such as |
e−
〉, because of its large mass. Weak-force couplings compel the simultaneously emitted neutrino to be in a "charged-lepton-centric" superposition such as |
ν
e〉, which is an eigenstate for a "flavor" that is fixed by the electron's mass eigenstate, and not in one of the neutrino's own mass eigenstates. Because the neutrino is in a coherent superposition that is not a mass eigenstate, its state oscillates significantly as it travels. No analogous mechanism exists in the Standard Model that would make charged leptons detectably oscillate. In the four decays mentioned above, where the charged lepton is emitted in a unique mass eigenstate, the charged lepton will not oscillate, as single mass eigenstates propagate without oscillation.
2. The question of how neutrino masses arise has not been answered conclusively. In the Standard Model of particle physics, fermions only have mass because of interactions with the Higgs field (see Higgs boson). These interactions involve both left- and right-handed versions of the fermion (see chirality). However, only left-handed neutrinos have been observed so far.
3. If it is assumed that the neutrinos interact with the Higgs field with approximately the same strengths as the charged fermions do, the heavy mass should be close to the GUT scale. Because the Standard Model has only one fundamental mass scale,[b] all particle masses[c] must arise in relation to this scale. [Note : At the GUT scale, there are issues with energy conservation]
Probably time is an integral part of activity - change form one state to another state. Energy may be the pre-requisite/ base for that change to happen, but may not be the cause for it. Energy is sufficiently available for all particles to be in continuous motion. What's its source ? Is it a physical one ? We need to define some fundamental forces that seem to explain the inexhaustible source of energy. I am able to write this or move my hand because there is empty space around me (and within me) which is most crucial part which is never taken into account as it seems to be a dead identity. Rest and fasting seem to rejuvenate the body and mind - is it some energy being infused into the system ?
ReplyDeleteUniverse seems to be ever-present and human mind tries to capture its essence. Such sharing helps to look a the multiple dimensions of nature.
Interestingly, in Quantum Field Theory, all particles are treated as plane waves [exp(jwt)] and so are present everywhere! There is no motion in the sense of Classical Newtonian Mechanics. But yes, there has to be a source of energy for this Physical Universe. We need to find the source and also how it connects with the Physical domain.
ReplyDeleteNon-conservation of energy over short time scales is already well accepted in physics community and that's what leads to virtual particles. But this process doesn't involve qualia and is fully predictable in a statistical sense.
ReplyDeleteSo the question is, does the coupling of qualia with matter in biological systems also involve non-conservation of energy in physical domain? If so, that would require non-conservation over longer time scales and in a way that's not statistically predictable.
So, essentially, physics needs to move from a calculus of probabilities to a calculus of possibilities.
Life is an almost zero probability event. Can we still understand this scientifically?
Currently Science has no clue about Life and Consciousness, and so these terms are not well defined in that community, and will perhaps never be since Life and Consciousness cannot be modelled using mathematical equations.
ReplyDeleteAnd Energy is just one of the several conserved quantities in mathematical equations of physics. It does not have any deeper meaning.
What I am essentially trying to show is that these mathematical equations are just approximations, and if we take into account the P-NP interactions, the equations would no longer have any conserved quantities whatsoever.
I don't think anything can be said about the nature and properties of non-physical energy. I think we can make only two statements:
ReplyDelete1. It is possible for the physical realm to exchange energy with the non-physical realm.
2. The above process is an essential ingredient of life and subjective experience. To be more precise, the above process is a necessary but not sufficient condition.
(1) is already well accepted in established physics on very short time-intervals, in the form of virtual particles or field effects. What remains to be shown is (2).
I would also like to add a third statement, which we can argue on later:
It is impossible to find the sufficient conditions for life.
Fact 1 : QFT and its derivatives can explain almost all the results of physical experiments unless we go to very high energies where GR effects need to be taken into account.
ReplyDeleteFact 2 : QFT can't explain qualia.
Obvious inference 1 : QFT needs to be updated.
Obvious inference 2 : No need to waste time on paranormal experiments to find a reason to change QFT. The evidence of qualia and our own subjective experience is sufficient.
Not-so-obvious inference : Interaction of qualia with physical systems requires exchange of energy, since no work can be done without it. So, there must be violation of energy conservation in physical domain.
Fact 3 : Violation of energy conservation already happens in physical systems over short time-scales (virtual particles).
Fact 4 : Energy conservation at vertices of Feynman diagrams is because time of measurement and interaction is ignored in these calculations.
The 4th chapter of Patanjali Yoga Sutras provides a more detailed description of memory. Essentially, what it seems to say is that memory (or samskaras) are patterns of behaviour which reinforce similar patterns of behaviour. And what we call the mind is just a collection of these patterns of behaviour.
ReplyDeleteI think it applies not just to memory of biological organisms, but to physical systems as well. I think all laws in this universe are evolutionary (including physical laws). We also can't use this Yogic perspective to derive physical laws, since there are an infinite number of physical possibilities, and which ones get manifested in a given universe at given point in time is impossible to predict. In some sense, in the Yogic view, everything is equally likely to occur and will occur at some point in space-time!
The primary hurdle in linking Yogic knowledge with modern science is not a lack of understanding of the Sanskrit terms, but that the Yogic laws are too general and Scientific laws too specific. And there is a reason for this. Yoga aims at liberation of the individual. And Science aims at building technology. I guess the twain shall never meet!