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Leonardo

Doubting Conventional Reality: Interactive Mind Works

Lynden Stone

Published Aug 16, 2016• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum mechanics sits uncomfortably with “conventional reality,” defined as knowable, objective and mind-independent. There seems to be no consensus among physicists as to what the findings of quantum mechanics mean for conventional reality. Drawing on concepts of quantum mechanics, the author makes artworks that provoke viewers to doubt conventional reality. Here, she discusses two of her interactive “mind works,” which provide not only artistic metaphorical representations of quantum concepts but also quantum random events that allow viewers to test their beliefs, or otherwise, in a reality that is objective and mind-independent.

DOI
10.1162/leon_a_01341

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Quantum mechanics sits uncomfortably with “conventional reality,” defined as knowable, objective and mind-independent. There seems to be no consensus among physicists as to what the findings of quantum mechanics mean for conventional reality. Drawing on concepts of quantum mechanics, the author makes artworks that provoke viewers to doubt conventional reality. Here, she discusses two of her interactive “mind works,” which provide not only artistic metaphorical representations of quantum concepts but also quantum random events that allow viewers to test their beliefs, or otherwise, in a reality that is objective and mind-independent.
I make artwork that engages with quantum mechanics to enable the viewer to doubt conventional reality. Quantum mechanics gives significant cause to doubt conventional reality. Rather than reality being knowable, objective and mind-independent, one quantum theory poses the confronting possibility that reality is brought into existence through observations, even, controversially, by consciousness. My 'mind works' projects, one of which is the Metaphase Typewriter revival project, enables a viewer to doubt conventional reality. Specifically, the 'mind works' projects do this by providing the viewer opportunities to interact with events of quantum superposition, using only consciousness, to arguably affect or even create material reality.
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It is not easy for practicing physicists to keep track of the ongoing philosophical debate concerning the "reality'' of the entities they manipulate or the "objective validity'' of the results of their work. In addition, the role of the observer and the theory of the measuring process seem to be themselves controversial. Therefore it may be appropriate to present an interpretation of quantum mechanics which corresponds to the perspective of most practicing physicists, although the author makes no claim to possessing any particular knowledge of the literature in this domain. The final four sections present some more specific descriptions of the concepts used, so that they may also serve for more philosophical discussions.
The counterintuitive phenomenon of quantum superposition requires a radical review of our ideas of reality. The author suggests that translations of quantum concepts into visual art may assist in provoking such a revision. This essay first introduces the concept of quantum superposition and points out its divergence from conventional perceptions of reality. The author then discusses how visual art might provide insight into quantum superposition. Finally she discusses the visual representation of quantum superposition by contemporary artists Jonathon Keats, Julian Voss-Andreae, Antony Gormley and Daniel Crooks; the problematic and paradoxical nature of such representations; and how these works might provoke a revision of our views of physical reality.
The philosophy of quantum mechanics has often been conceived by physicists as a collection of dogmas concerning what can be measured, observed and known. To this branch of dialectics the present paper does not attempt to contribute, chiefly because it is written from the conviction that no part of science, nor any philosophy, can safely predict what may be feasible or knowable. Rather, this brief essay endeavors to expose the epistemology of quantum physics in a way which allows it to be recognized as an extension of the ordinary processes of cognition, as the continuation of a line which starts in sensory perception, leads straight through the methods of classical physics into quantum mechanics and shows no signs of terminating even there.
Experiments with remote perception and Random Event Generators (REG) performed over the last decades show small but significant anomalous effects. Since these effects seem to be independent of spatial and temporal distance, they appear to be in disagreement with the standard scientific worldview. A very simple explanation of quantum mechanics is presented, rejecting all unjustified claims about the world. A view of mind in agreement with cognitive neuroscience is introduced. It is argued that mind and consciousness are emergent properties of the brain and are understandable without any nonphysical assumptions. A plausible explanation of the results of anomalous experiments, based on the concept of synchronicity, introduced by C.G. Jung and advocated by W. Pauli, is offered. A proof is given that strong correlations should exist between any systems that once interacted. Synchronicity events between parts of the brain and physical objects may be sufficient to explain the results of anomalous experiments. Standard physics is sufficient to understand these phenomena. Motto: It would be most satisfactory if physics and psyche could be seen as complementary aspects of the same reality.