The double-slit experiment, a cornerstone of quantum mechanics, is traditionally viewed as a paradoxical demonstration of wave-particle duality. This article posits that its core dynamic—superposition, interference, and environment-driven localization—is not a unique quantum phenomenon but a fundamental computational principle implemented by the brain. We introduce the Ze framework, arguing that the brain operates as a biological interferometer. Cognitive systems maintain multiple generative hypotheses in a state of active interference (superposition), analogous to the quantum wavefunction passing through both slits. "Which-path" information, supplied by sensory data, action, and social context, forces cognitive decoherence, localizing perception and decision into a single narrative. Sleep is recast as an intrinsic quantum eraser, periodically degrading which-path information to restore cognitive flexibility and prevent pathological hyper-localization. The framework structurally links quantum decoherence, Bayesian active inference, and the neurobiology of sleep and wake cycles. It provides a transdiagnostic model for psychopathology, where disorders like psychosis and PTSD are seen as dysregulations of this interference-localization cycle. We conclude that the brain does not observe quantum reality; it actively instantiates its core logic, making the double-slit experiment a continuous, lived process of resolving ambiguity to survive and understand the world.
The double-slit experiment, a cornerstone of quantum mechanics, is traditionally viewed as a paradoxical demonstration of wave-particle duality. This article posits that its core dynamic—superposition, interference, and environment-driven localization—is not a unique quantum phenomenon but a fundamental computational principle implemented by the brain. We introduce the Ze framework, arguing that the brain operates as a biological interferometer. Cognitive systems maintain multiple generative hypotheses in a state of active interference (superposition), analogous to the quantum wavefunction passing through both slits. "Which-path" information, supplied by sensory data, action, and social context, forces cognitive decoherence, localizing perception and decision into a single narrative. Sleep is recast as an intrinsic quantum eraser, periodically degrading which-path information to restore cognitive flexibility and prevent pathological hyper-localization. The framework structurally links quantum decoherence, Bayesian active inference, and the neurobiology of sleep and wake cycles. It provides a transdiagnostic model for psychopathology, where disorders like psychosis and PTSD are seen as dysregulations of this interference-localization cycle. We conclude that the brain does not observe quantum reality; it actively instantiates its core logic, making the double-slit experiment a continuous, lived process of resolving ambiguity to survive and understand the world.
The double-slit experiment, a cornerstone of quantum mechanics, is traditionally viewed as a paradoxical demonstration of wave-particle duality. This article posits that its core dynamic—superposition, interference, and environment-driven localization—is not a unique quantum phenomenon but a fundamental computational principle implemented by the brain. We introduce the Ze framework, arguing that the brain operates as a biological interferometer. Cognitive systems maintain multiple generative hypotheses in a state of active interference (superposition), analogous to the quantum wavefunction passing through both slits. "Which-path" information, supplied by sensory data, action, and social context, forces cognitive decoherence, localizing perception and decision into a single narrative. Sleep is recast as an intrinsic quantum eraser, periodically degrading which-path information to restore cognitive flexibility and prevent pathological hyper-localization. The framework structurally links quantum decoherence, Bayesian active inference, and the neurobiology of sleep and wake cycles. It provides a transdiagnostic model for psychopathology, where disorders like psychosis and PTSD are seen as dysregulations of this interference-localization cycle. We conclude that the brain does not observe quantum reality; it actively instantiates its core logic, making the double-slit experiment a continuous, lived process of resolving ambiguity to survive and understand the world.
The double-slit experiment stands as the cornerstone of quantum mysticism, often interpreted as evidence for particles existing in multiple places simultaneously or consciousness collapsing reality. Within the Absolute Medium (AM) Model, this experiment ceases to be a probabilistic paradox and becomes a deterministic, fluid-dynamic interaction between a moving excitation and the universal energetic net. We demonstrate that what standard physics calls “wave-particle duality” is actually “core-wake duality”: a localized topological defect (the core) moving through an ultra-dense elastic substrate generates a physical wave field (the wake) that interferes, guiding the core along paths of least resistance. All variations of the experiment— which-way measurements, delayed choice, quantum eraser—receive mechanical explanations grounded in the medium’s properties. This framework eliminates the need for superposition, wavefunction collapse, or observer-created reality, replacing them with the coherent dynamics of a continuous medium.
The measurement problem in quantum mechanics challenges our understanding of reality, demanding explanations beyond both Copenhagen's "collapse" and the Many-Worlds' ontological multiplicity. This paper introduces and formalizes the Ze framework as a novel synthesis of Relational Quantum Mechanics (RQM) and the Active Inference paradigm from theoretical neuroscience. Ze posits that quantum states are relational, defined by the posterior beliefs of interacting generative models engaged in variational free energy minimization. Within this framework, quantum superposition is formalized as high compatibility (ℐ ≈ 1) between competing models, characterized by low free-energy conflict (ΔF < θ). Conversely, the transition to a localized state—the physical correlate of "collapse"—is reconceived not as a metaphysical event but as an optimization-driven phase transition. This occurs when model conflict exceeds a critical threshold (ΔF > θ), a process objectively driven by interactions like which-path marking. We demonstrate that matter-wave interferometry with complex molecules provides a direct experimental testbed for these principles, where which-path information and quantum erasure actively manipulate ΔF. Extending the isomorphism, we propose that transitions in human cognition—from focused wakefulness to dreaming and psychedelic states—are governed by analogous shifts in the brain's inferential threshold (θ). Thus, Ze offers a unified, testable architecture bridging quantum foundations, statistical physics, and the neuroscience of consciousness.
This paper proposes a novel theoretical framework that reinterprets quantum behavior—superposition, interference, and wavefunction collapse—not as fundamental properties of matter but as emergent epistemic properties of a specific class of information-processing architectures, termed Ze systems. A Ze system is defined as an active predictive engine that operates on continuous data streams through two distinct modes: forward reading (ℱ) and retrograde encoding (ℛ). The core architectural constraint is that ℛ, the process of running predictions backward to reconcile models, necessitates the cessation of the forward information flow ℱ. We demonstrate that superposition corresponds to the system state where competing internal hypotheses remain compatible, formally defined by a small free energy difference (ΔF < θ). Collapse is not a primitive event but a structured, two-stage process triggered when ΔF ≥ θ: first, the mandatory stoppage of ℱ, and second, the execution of ℛ to achieve a single, globally consistent model. Interference is shown to be a statistical signature of the coherent blending of hypotheses when they are non-distinguishable. This framework generates testable predictions across scales, from the accelerated decoherence of complex molecules to the modulation of cognitive flexibility during REM sleep. By deriving quantum phenomena from a principle of predictive inference, the theory bridges the Free Energy Principle, relational quantum mechanics, and decoherence theory, suggesting that quantumness is a universal signature of systems that must pause to look backward in order to predict the future.
The double-slit interference experiment has long been widely misinterpreted as "human consciousness directly causing wavefunction collapse". This view confuses physical measurement interaction with subjective conscious experience and deviates from the orthodox interpretation of modern quantum mechanics. Starting from the double-slit experiment, this paper distinguishes the real physical mechanism of wavefunction collapse and points out that the disappearance of interference fringes originates from the physical coupling between measuring devices and microscopic particles as well as environmental decoherence, which has no direct causal relationship with conscious observation. On this basis, this paper proposes a self-consistent unified framework of consciousness and quantum universe: consciousness is not the trigger of collapse, but the ontological source of the entire quantum possibility universe. Through the Yang-Mills mass gap and symmetry breaking mechanism, consciousness condenses the potential quantum field into a material universe with mass, structure and stable dynamics. The biological brain acts as a localized carrier of consciousness, enabling the overall consciousness to observe and experience its own creation from a limited perspective, forming a closed loop of "consciousness creation—self-observation—self-cognition". This paper corrects systematic biases in popular science and public perception, and provides a rigorous and unified path for understanding the real role of consciousness in the quantum universe.
This preprint presents a foundational theory that reinterprets quantum mechanics not as a description of fundamental physical reality, but as the emergent statistical signature of a universal information-processing architecture. We introduce and formally define the Ze (Zero-point entropy) system—an active predictive engine that operates through a mandatory cycle of forward prediction and retrograde inference. The system's core axiom is that the retrograde encoding process, essential for reconciling past models with present evidence, necessitates a complete cessation of the forward information flow. From this single architectural constraint, we mathematically derive phenomena isomorphic to quantum superposition, interference, and wavefunction collapse. Superposition corresponds to a dynamical equilibrium of multiple predictive hypotheses; collapse is a structured, non-fundamental process triggered when hypothesis divergence exceeds a system-specific stability threshold; and interference arises from the coherent blending of compatible hypotheses. The framework positions quantum behavior as an epistemic property of any system performing active inference under this architectural constraint, bridging domains from particle physics to cognitive neuroscience. We present novel, falsifiable predictions and propose that quantum theory describes the dynamics of a universal class of predictive engines, not a microscopic realm of reality.