A minimal approach to the measurement problem and the quantum-to-classical transition assumes a universally valid quantum formalism, i.e. unitary time evolution governed by a Schrödinger-type equation. As had been pointed out long ago, in this view the measurement process can be described by decoherence which results in a "Many-Worlds" or "Many-Minds" scenario according to Everett and Zeh. A silent assumption for decoherence to proceed is however, that there exists incomplete information about the environment our object system gets entangled with in the measurement process. This paper addresses the question where this information is traced out and - by adopting recent approaches to model consciousness in neuroscience - argues that a rigorous interpretation results in a modern perspective on the von-Neumann-Wigner interpretation - namely that the information that is or is not available in the consciousness of the observer is crucial for the definition of the environment. As such the quantum-to-classical transition while being difficult or impossible to probe in physics may become testable in psychology.
A minimal approach to the measurement problem and the quantum-to-classical transition assumes a universally valid quantum formalism, i.e. unitary time evolution governed by a Schrödinger-type equation. As had been pointed out long ago, in this view the measurement process can be described by decoherence which results in a "Many-Worlds" or "Many-Minds" scenario according to Everett and Zeh. A silent assumption for decoherence to proceed is however, that there exists incomplete information about the environment our object system gets entangled with in the measurement process. This paper addresses the question where this information is traced out and - by adopting recent approaches to model consciousness in neuroscience - argues that a rigorous interpretation results in a modern perspective on the von-Neumann-Wigner interpretation - namely that the information that is or is not available in the consciousness of the observer is crucial for the definition of the environment. As such the quantum-to-classical transition while being difficult or impossible to probe in physics may become testable in psychology.
A minimal approach to the measurement problem and the quantum-to-classical transition assumes a universally valid quantum formalism, i.e. unitary time evolution governed by a Schrödinger-type equation. As had been pointed out long ago, in this view the measurement process can be described by decoherence which results in a "Many-Worlds" or "Many-Minds" scenario according to Everett and Zeh. A silent assumption for decoherence to proceed is however, that there exists incomplete information about the environment our object system gets entangled with in the measurement process. This paper addresses the question where this information is traced out and - by adopting recent approaches to model consciousness in neuroscience - argues that a rigorous interpretation results in a perspectival notion of the quantum-to-classical transition. The information that is or is not available in the consciousness of the observer is crucial for the definition of the environment (i.e. the unknown degrees of freedom in the remainder of the Universe). As such the Many-Worlds-Interpretation, while being difficult or impossible to probe in physics, may become testable in psychology.
A variant of the von Neumann-Wigner Interpretation is proposed. It does not make use of the familiar language of wave functions and observers. Instead it pictures the state of the physical world as a vector in a Fock space and, therefore not, literally, a function of any spacetime coordinates. And, rather than segregating consciousness into individual points of view (each carrying with it a sense of its proper time), this model proposes only unitary states of consciousness, Q(t), where t represents a fiducial time with respect to which both the state of the physical world and the state of consciousness evolve. States in our world's Fock space are classified as either 'admissible' (meaning they correspond to definite states of consciousness) or 'inadmissible' (meaning they do not). The evolution of the state vector of the world is such as to always keep it restricted to 'admissible' states. Consciousness is treated rather like what Chalmers has called an "m-property." We try to show that problems with the quantum Zeno effect do not arise from this model. The measurement of degenerate states is also discussed, as is the EPR paradox. Finally, it is suggested that the universe is far more likely to contain conscious observers than not.
In recent decades, progress in the field of neurosciences has triggered an interest in understanding mind-brain relationships. Quantum Mechanics (QM) has been present in the debate from its beginnings through the well-known measurement paradox. The standard interpretation of QM considers two basic, fundamentally irreducible, processes: the deterministic evolution of the wave-function according to the Schrodinger equation, once the initial conditions have been settled; and the indeterministic wave-function collapse into one of the possible outcomes, after performing a specific measurement. So, QM would point to the limits of a purely deterministic view of nature and, in particular, of brains. Nevertheless, QM’s relevance for the brain’s physics is still to be proven. Detractors of the QM influence are confident of the role of decoherent processes at different physical scales in order to ensure a classical deterministic behavior of the brain. However, little attention is paid to the epistemic implications of invoking decoherence for the mind-brain problem. In this paper, (i) we present lasting QM models stating a specific view of human consciousness and make explicit their position regarding the relationship between the physical activity of neurons and/or networks of neurons and the phenomenal conscious experience; (ii) we review the main criticisms of the relevance of QM in the brain and, most importantly, we bring out the philosophical implications behind the usual recourse to decoherence in the transition from the quantum to the classical world, explaining why the mind-brain problem and the measurement paradox should not be disentangled.
A variant of the von Neumann-Wigner Interpretation is proposed. It does not make use of the familiar language of wave functionsand observers. Instead it pictures the state of the physical world as a vector in a Fock space and, therefore not, literally, a functionof any spacetime coordinates. And, rather than segregating consciousness into individual points of view (each carrying with it asense of its proper time), this model proposes only unitary states of consciousness, Q(t), where t represents a fiducial time withrespect to which both the state of the physical world and the state of consciousness evolve. States in our world's Fock space areclassified as either 'admissible' (meaning they correspond to definite states of consciousness) or 'inadmissible' (meaning they donot). The evolution of the state vector of the world is such as to always keep it restricted to 'admissible' states. Consciousness istreated very much like what Chalmers calls an "M-Property." But we try to show that problems with the quantum Zeno effect do not arise from this model.
A variant of the von Neumann-Wigner Interpretation is proposed. It does not make use of the familiar language of wave functions and observers. Instead it pictures the state of the physical world as a vector in a Fock space and, therefore not, literally, a function of any spacetime coordinates. And, rather than segregating consciousness into individual points of view (each carrying with it a sense of its proper time), this model proposes only unitary states of consciousness, Q(t), where t represents a fiducial time with respect to which both the state of the physical world and the state of consciousness evolve. This would seem to impose a preferred Lorentz frame on the world. But it will be argued that no physical violations of relativity are engendered thereby.
Hugh Everett thought it was preposterous to accept the Schrodinger equation as a fundamental law of quantum physics, but then assert that it is usually violated in any observation of quantum phenomena. Demanding that the Schrodinger equation always holds led him to the 'many worlds' interpretation. To avoid this conclusion, I propose that the Schrodinger equation is not fundamental, but that one should instead regard as primary a von Neumann version of the equation which lets the density matric evolve unitarily, but where conclusions reached concerning measurements always involve the non-unitary step of tracing out environmental degrees of freedom which always exist even if the system in question is the entire observable universe.