The present knowledge of the brain neurology, collectively, is insufficient to explain higher mental processes such as (self)-consciousness, qualia, intuition, meditative states, transpersonal experiences as well as ultra rapid brain responses and functional binding between distant parts of the brain. It is proposed that super-causal space-time configurations may function as an interface between molecular transitions and the particular higher mental functions. As super-causal principles, the iso-energetic brain model as well as various quantum brain theories, are treated. Iso-energetic states of the brain may enable protein perturbation mediated information processing within a tenth of a millisecond and make use of subjective space-time configuration created in life as an emergent modality of the neural system. In addition, elementary quantum processes are seen as essential for higher brain functions, since our central nervous system forms an integral part of a dynamic universe as a non-local information processing modality. In this respect, quantum physics also allows the build-up of an individual mental knowledge domain on the basis of self-selective imprinting of a geometric space/time dimension, as induced by wave/ particle transitions in the brain. The central hypothesis of the present paper is that a versatile and rapid responding brain function requires complementary information processing mechanisms both at the iso-energetic and quantum (macro- and micro-) levels, enabling bottom up and top down information processing. This requires a nested organization of fine-tuned neural micro-sites that enable coherence/de-coherence transitions as a basis for information transfer. For a rapid and causally effective flux of information, as well as a continuous updating of a personal information domain, a “bi-cyclic” mental workspace is conceived, housing interacting and entangled wave and protein-based perturbations that build-up and retrieve information from a universal knowledge domain.
The present knowledge of the brain neurology, collectively, is insufficient to explain higher mental processes such as (self)-consciousness, qualia, intuition, meditative states, transpersonal experiences as well as ultra rapid brain responses and functional binding between distant parts of the brain. It is proposed that super-causal space-time configurations may function as an interface between molecular transitions and the particular higher mental functions. As super-causal principles, the iso-energetic brain model as well as various quantum brain theories, are treated. Iso-energetic states of the brain may enable protein perturbation mediated information processing within a tenth of a millisecond and make use of subjective space-time configuration created in life as an emergent modality of the neural system. In addition, elementary quantum processes are seen as essential for higher brain functions, since our central nervous system forms an integral part of a dynamic universe as a non-local information processing modality. In this respect, quantum physics also allows the build-up of an individual mental knowledge domain on the basis of self-selective imprinting of a geometric space/time dimension, as induced by wave/ particle transitions in the brain. The central hypothesis of the present paper is that a versatile and rapid responding brain function requires complementary information processing mechanisms both at the iso-energetic and quantum (macro- and micro-) levels, enabling bottom up and top down information processing. This requires a nested organization of fine-tuned neural micro-sites that enable coherence/de-coherence transitions as a basis for information transfer. For a rapid and causally effective flux of information, as well as a continuous updating of a personal information domain, a “bi-cyclic” mental workspace is conceived, housing interacting and entangled wave and protein-based perturbations that build-up and retrieve information from a universal knowledge domain.
ABSTRACT Recent advances at the intersection of quantum physics, neuroscience, and cognitive science have renewed interest in whether quantum phenomena and quantum‐inspired formalisms can inform models of human cognition and decision‐making. While classical neural and computational models explain many aspects of perception and behavior, they face limitations in accounting for contextuality, order effects, probabilistic reasoning violations, ambiguity resolution, and rapid information integration. This review synthesizes evidence and theoretical frameworks linking quantum‐related principles to cognition, with emphasis on quantum sensing in biological systems, molecular and subcellular quantum‐relevant mechanisms, quantum‐to‐classical transition pathways, quantum‐inspired models of perception and decision‐making, and quantum‐inspired computational approaches. It also extends beyond the probabilistic arm of quantum cognition by considering emerging equilibrium‐based and causal‐logical theories, including mental equilibrium, brain‐universe similarity, mind‐light‐matter unity, quantum emergence, and quantum intelligence. Throughout, the review distinguishes physically instantiated quantum mechanisms from abstract quantum‐like formalisms that model contextuality, mental entanglement, and non‐separable cognitive dynamics without requiring sustained macroscopic quantum coherence in the brain. Finally, it identifies methodological challenges and future directions for advancing quantum cognitive science toward experimentally testable and biologically meaningful theories.
The “quantum mind” hypothesis, the notion that quantum phenomena are causal and perhaps even essential in mentation and particularly consciousness, has met with fierce resistance. This has been particularly the case over the past 20 years, and the first task of this paper is to show that while there are indeed strong - mainly empirical - arguments against the thesis, the ‘in principle arguments published to date evince premature closure. The burgeoning field of “Quantum cognition” has established that quantum models are appropriate for decision-making, and that of “Quantum biology” has now made the notion of quantum effects at physiological temperatures plausible. If quantum effects are relevant to consciousness, they are likely to be seen in the contrast between attended to and not attended to streams of information. An exciting confirmation of this theme is the fact that attended to streams involve a decorrelation of the informational fluctuations in streams not so attended to. This gives rise to the idea that perhaps what enters our consciousness is the result of such a decorrelation from a superposed state. Decorrelation for the purposes of sparsification is prevalent in the brain; what may enter consciousness in the schema proposed here is mental processes with a duration greater than the sampling rate of consciousness (about 80ms) the wave function of which is undergoing state-vector reduction in a manner described by the Quantum Zeno effect. This allows also for truly voluntary action in the manner Von Neumann suggested. This is distinct from the situation with binocular resolution dichoptic stimuli which is a mixture, and is an example of what Fodor calls a “vertical” module with its operation mandatory. There is nothing to be gained by making binocular synthesis subject to voluntary choice. Likewise, it is realistic to propose that attention in lower animals with their less complex brains involves a much simpler mechanism than human consciousness. A model of the individual neuron as a harmonic oscillator is outlined, with a causal role for ion channels in the generation of the oscillations. It is clear that ion channels are critical for attention. Moreover, at a mesoscopic level, it is demonstrated that the brain enters a quiet “shutter” mode several times a second in which quantum effects may be appropriately amplified. If quantum effects exist in the brain, it is likely that this complex of phenomena will be central to them. The de Barros and Suppes models, in addition to the similar formalism due to Henry Stapp, are also briefly described.
Electromagnetic quantum field interactions provide a deeper understanding of the emergence of consciousness through an ontological interpretation of quantum mechanics. Quasiparticle interactions in brain matter can produce virtual particles, hitherto mathematical conveniences, which reflect the manifold images of brain activities in terms of effects on charged particles that have physical quantum effect similar to the Aharonov-Bohm effect in quantum field theory. Electromagnetic potentials in the quantum domain pervade the entire brain through causative interactions. The exchange of energy quanta during quantum field interactions emerge as distinct patterns of quasiparticles and their entanglement produces waves of virtual particles with periodicities of discrete energies tethered through a common quantum potential as they interact and collectively represent the emergence of self-awareness as a quantum dynamic effect carried on the magnetic vector potential throughout the brain. This is caused by the magnetic dipole moments sensitivity to the phase shifts entrained by the zeitgeber acting on dipolar molecules in interfacial water. The emergence of consciousness is inseparable (spatiotemporally) in the sense that the endogenous electromagnetic field (and therefore the forces acting on the particles) vanish yet neurophenomenologically separate from the physical through the magnetic dipole moments sensitivity to the phase shifts of the coherent system. The subjective aspect of consciousness or phenomenal consciousness facilitates qualia as quantum information through information-physical interactions that metastabilize into rhythms unfolding through resonance into access consciousness as cognizable associable representations of subjective experiences. The transition from subjectivity occurs non-reductively from the microlevel to the macrolevel as a mechanism of spontaneous breaking of symmetry resulting from photon behavior of interfacial water instantiated by macroergic effects in the nuclei of neurons through a continuous supply of metabolic energy. The emergence of consciousness in living organisms disappears once autopoietic processes in populations of neurons cease to function.
Abstract Features of consciousness difficult to understand in terms of conventional neuroscience have evoked application of quantum theory, which describes the fundamental behavior of matter and energy. In this paper we propose that aspects of quantum theory (e.g. quantum coherence) and of a newly proposed physical phenomenon of quantum wave function “self-collapse” (objective reduction: OR - Penrose, 1994) are essential for consciousness, and occur in cytoskeletal microtubules and other structures within each of the brain's neurons. The particular characteristics of microtubules suitable for quantum effects include their crystal-like lattice structure, hollow inner core, organization of cell function and capacity for information processing. We envisage that conformational states of microtubule subunits (tubulins) are coupled to internal quantum events, and cooperatively interact (compute) with other tubulins. We further assume that macroscopic coherent superposition of quantum-coupled tubulin conformational states occurs throughout significant brain volumes and provides the global binding essential to consciousness. We equate the emergence of the microtubule quantum coherence with pre-conscious processing which grows (for up to 500 ms) until the mass-energy difference among the separated states of tubulins reaches a threshold related to quantum gravity. According to the arguments for OR put forth in Penrose (1994), superpositioned states each have their own space-time geometries. When the degree of coherent mass-energy difference leads to sufficient separation of space-time geometry, the system must choose and decay (reduce, collapse) to a single universe state. In this way, a transient superposition of slightly differing space-time geometries persists until an abrupt quantum → classical reduction occurs. Unlike the random, “subjective reduction” (SR, or R) of standard quantum theory caused by observation or environmental entanglement, the OR we propose in microtubules is a self-collapse and it results in particular patterns of microtubule-tubulin conformational states that regulate neuronal activities including synaptic functions. Possibilities and probabilities for post-reduction tubulin states are influenced by factors including attachments of microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) acting as “nodes” which tune and “orchestrate” the quantum oscillations. We thus term the self-tuning OR process in microtubules “orchestrated objective reduction” (“Orch OR”), and calculate an estimate for the number of tubulins (and neurons) whose coherence for relevant time periods (e.g. 500 ms) will elicit Orch OR. In providing a connection among (1) pre-conscious to conscious transition, (2) fundamental space-time notions, (3) non-computability, and (4) binding of various (time scale and spatial) reductions into an instantaneous event (“conscious now”), we believe Orch OR in brain microtubules is the most specific and plausible model for consciousness yet proposed.
Identifying the physiological processes in the central nervous system that underlie our conscious experiences has been at the forefront of cognitive neuroscience. While the principles of classical physics were long found to be unaccommodating for a causally effective consciousness, the inherent indeterminism of quantum physics, together with its characteristic dichotomy between quantum states and quantum observables, provides a fertile ground for the physical modeling of consciousness. Here, we utilize the Schrödinger equation, together with the Planck–Einstein relation between energy and frequency, in order to determine the appropriate quantum dynamical timescale of conscious processes. Furthermore, with the help of a simple two-qubit toy model we illustrate the importance of non-zero interaction Hamiltonian for the generation of quantum entanglement and manifestation of observable correlations between different measurement outcomes. Employing a quantitative measure of entanglement based on Schmidt decomposition, we show that quantum evolution governed only by internal Hamiltonians for the individual quantum subsystems preserves quantum coherence of separable initial quantum states, but eliminates the possibility of any interaction and quantum entanglement. The presence of non-zero interaction Hamiltonian, however, allows for decoherence of the individual quantum subsystems along with their mutual interaction and quantum entanglement. The presented results show that quantum coherence of individual subsystems cannot be used for cognitive binding because it is a physical mechanism that leads to separability and non-interaction. In contrast, quantum interactions with their associated decoherence of individual subsystems are instrumental for dynamical changes in the quantum entanglement of the composite quantum state vector and manifested correlations of different observable outcomes. Thus, fast decoherence timescales could assist cognitive binding through quantum entanglement across extensive neural networks in the brain cortex.
The Essence of the Project our goal is not simply to invent a device or program, but rather to create an integrated system that preserves, simulates, and develops human consciousness at the quantum level, so that unique knowledge, experiences, and memories are not lost upon the death of the biological body. We can summarize the idea in three pillars: Mind Digitization Scanning a person's neural architecture (connectome) with nanoscale precision. Encoding the brain's electrochemical dynamics in a mathematical form amenable to quantum simulation. Cosmic Memory Bank A quantum data warehouse to store human memory (personal and collective) with near-instantaneous access time. Protecting data with unbreakable quantum encryption. Integrating individual data into a "collective consciousness" library that can be used by any future generation or civilization. Quantum Artificial Intelligence (Quantum AI) Acts as a conscious assistant system capable of operating and simulating stored mental patterns. Not just a data processor, but a virtual mind capable of creativity, self-learning, and cognitive expansion. 2. Project Technical Architecture A. Quantum Brain-Computer Interface (QBCI) Relies on ultra-sensitive nanoscale neural sensors to read electrochemical states with Planck-time precision. Using quantum entanglement to instantly link brain signals to quantum processing units. B. Quantum Simulation Model of Consciousness Representing neurons as quantum qubits instead of traditional bits. Simulating neural interconnections as quantum circuits with multi-path probabilities (superposition). Combining dynamic brain physics models with quantum self-learning algorithms. C. Quantum Memory Bank Quantum servers distributed across data centers on Earth and beyond (satellites, space stations). Hierarchical Archiving System: Core Memory: Identity, values, core experiences. Contextual Memory: Experiences, emotions, temporal and spatial context. Adaptive Memory: Continuous updates and learning after digitization. 3. Near and Long-Term Goals Near Term (10–15 years) Create a partial experimental model to simulate consciousness on a limited scale (an animal brain or part of the human brain). Develop a stable and secure quantum brain-computer interface. Build a prototype quantum memory bank. Long-Term (50–100 years) Preserve and transfer human consciousness across biological, digital, and quantum media. Enabling "consciousness migration" across space—i.e., transferring minds to robots or artificial biological bodies on other planets. Create a universal consciousness library, where civilizations share their data and experiences via space-based quantum networks.