Bulldozer00's Blog

In their wonderful book  “Quantum Enigma” (I just finished reading it twice in a row, back-to-back), physicists Kuttner and Rosenblum assert that quantum theory is the most battle-tested scientific theory of all time. In its 80 year existence, it has never failed any experimental test hurled at it by the most brilliant academic minds, past and present.

If my understanding is correct, and it might not be because of the nature of the subject matter, quantum theory says that nothing material exists until it is consciously observed. Hmmm, that sounds like the same thing spiritual teachers have been asserting for thousands of years before the development of quantum theory.

On the extremely small scale of sub-atomic sizes, that assertion has been proven many times over by employing the scientific way – experimentation. One classic example is that depending on which experiment you consciously choose to perform, you can prove that light is either a mass-less continuous wave or a stream of discrete and separate particles of mass. The reason why we can’t recreate paradoxical experiments similar to that with large macro-sized objects like people is because the technology needed to do it is not available, yet. Bummer.

Another assertion quantum theory makes is that two entangled objects can instantaneously influence one another, regardless of how far apart they are spaced. This assertion effectively voids Einstein’s proof that no physical entity can travel faster than the speed of light in a vacuum. Einstein called this “spooky action at a distance” and he spent a good deal of time trying to poke holes into quantum assertions like entanglement. Hmmm, sounds like quantum theory says everything is connected with everything else. More spiritual heresy?

The figure below shows a stack that hypothetically connects science to spirituality. It’s an expanded version of the science only, psychology-to-quantum physics stack presented in Kuttner’s and Rosenblum’s book. I subjectively added the non-scientific thoughts, feelings, and behavior layers to the top, and the consciousness, awareness, and no-thing layers to the bottom.

Because quantum theory butts up against consciousness, and they seem to be separated by an unexplainable brick wall, Kuttner and Rosenblum explore the seemingly mysterious connection between them in their book. As they say, “when experts don’t agree, you can pick your own expert to believe in“.