Perceived Reality, Quantum Mechanics, and Consciousness

Authors

Subhash Kak, Oklahoma State University
Deepak Chopra, Chopra FoundationFollow
Menas Kafatos, Chapman UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2014

Abstract

Our sense of reality is different from its mathematical basis as given by physical theories. Although nature at its deepest level is quantum mechanical and nonlocal, it appears to our minds in everyday experience as local and classical. Since the same laws should govern all phenomena, we propose this difference in the nature of perceived reality is due to the principle of veiled nonlocality that is associated with consciousness. Veiled nonlocality allows consciousness to operate and present what we experience as objective reality. In other words, this principle allows us to consider consciousness indirectly, in terms of how consciousness operates. We consider different theoretical models commonly used in physics and neuroscience to describe veiled nonlocality. Furthermore, if consciousness as an entity leaves a physical trace, then laboratory searches for such a trace should be sought for in nonlocality, where probabilities do not conform to local expectations.

Comments

This article was originally published in Cosmology, volume 18, in 2014.

Recommended Citation

Kak, S., Chopra, D., Kafatos, M.C. (2014) Perceived reality, quantum mechanics, and consciousness. Cosmology, Vol. 18, pp. 231-245.

Copyright

Cosmology.com