So, here we are, at the end of our travels. To paraphrase Machado, this path we have made by walking. Now we want to look back at the main points of this book, and summarize one more time our outlook on the future of quantum physics, and in particular, gravitization of quantum theory as a new view on quantum gravity and the completion of the structure of physics. Furthermore, we want to discuss what we call “mock quantum theory” and “mock gravitized quantum theory” as possible emergent descriptions of complex and adaptive systems, and outline their potential relevance for the physics of life and physics of consciousness. What we have to say about “mock quantum theory” is extremely speculative, and thus we intend to be very tentative and careful.
So, here we are, at the end of our travels. To paraphrase Machado, this path we have made by walking. Now we want to look back at the main points of this book, and summarize one more time our outlook on the future of quantum physics, and in particular, gravitization of quantum theory as a new view on quantum gravity and the completion of the structure of physics. Furthermore, we want to discuss what we call “mock quantum theory” and “mock gravitized quantum theory” as possible emergent descriptions of complex and adaptive systems, and outline their potential relevance for the physics of life and physics of consciousness. What we have to say about “mock quantum theory” is extremely speculative, and thus we intend to be very tentative and careful.
This book provides a unified overview of “modern physics” - combining its foundational pillars: relativity, quantum physics and gravity - and takes the reader on a tour of fundamental physics, through structural, historical and biographical perspectives. The book presents a “big picture” of physics, as well as its completion in terms of a new vision of the quantum theory of space, time, matter and energy. Chapters explore the overarching and unfinished structure of fundamental physics, defined via the three fundamental constants of physics (the velocity of light, the gravitational constant and the Planck constant). The book also celebrates the centenary of quantum mechanics, and the apparent conceptual conflict between quantum theory and the deepest theory of spacetime physics, Einstein’s general theory of relativity, and the resolution of that conflict in a new (“gravitized quantum”) view of the problem of quantum gravity. This book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate students of physics, professional physicists and scientists from other disciplines, as well as a general audience of non-professionals interested in the topic. Key features: Presents a cohesive and accessible overview of fundamental physics and its worldview Intertwines historical and biographical perspectives with scientific aspects Discusses a timely and cutting-edge topic at the forefront of research and discussion
This book had as its main objective to discuss how (quantum) physics concepts could be used in a relevant way in the modeling of a variety of economics/finance and psychology-based processes. For those readers who have come to read this conclusion, without skipping its “backbone,” we would like to say “thank you” for keeping with us until the end. The possible claim, which says that social science driven dynamics would need analyzing with techniques from the natural sciences, may well have been tempered with this book. Although quantum physics as a theory of prediction is one of the most successful theories humankind ever devised, it is not unreasonable to suggest that the number of foundational interpretations of quantum physics is sizable. Consider now the following natural question: “How can a theory with such a wide diversity of foundational interpretations serve to inform and elucidate a non-cognate area of research (like economics or psychology)?” Indeed, we should want to stand upright and write, without hesitation, the words “non-cognate.” No theory in social science can come close to the predictive power of quantum physics. However, very few social science theories are “plagued” by foundational issues of such depth as quantum physics. As an example, consider the issue of why quantum physical wave functions do have to be complex valued. Do physicists have a satisfactory answer to this very basic question? A theory of such predictive power has a partial differential equation, the Schrödinger equation, which cannot be rigorously derived. However, in economics and finance we strive to build theoretical edifices with the utmost respect for rigor.
A fully revised edition of this book has now been completed and published on Amazon, with the following major features, improvements, and additions: EQT Detection Theory: The Universe Has Never Been Silent: One Hundred Questions on Quantum Reality, the Cosmos, and Consciousness is a wide-ranging popular science book built around one hundred fundamental questions about nature. It begins with a simple but profound puzzle: is spacetime a pre-existing container, or does it emerge from deeper physical relations? From there, the book moves through quantum mechanics, the origin of forces, dark matter, dark energy, the arrow of time, life, consciousness, artificial intelligence, future technologies, and the limits of scientific explanation. At the center of the book is Energy Quantum Theory (EQT), a speculative but structured research program that attempts to reinterpret physical reality through the language of frequency, phase, resonance, and the energy quantum density field (\rho_f). Rather than presenting EQT as a completed theory, the book treats it as a lens: a way of asking old questions differently and connecting phenomena that are usually discussed separately. Gravity, electromagnetism, dark matter, dark energy, life, and consciousness are explored as different expressions of frequency structures operating across different scales. The book is written with a strong commitment to intellectual honesty. Each question follows a clear pattern: first, it explains the real phenomenon and the genuine puzzle; then it summarizes the current state of mainstream physics; then it introduces the possible EQT perspective; then it states the cost, boundary, and failure conditions of that perspective; finally, it reflects on why the question matters. This structure allows readers to distinguish established science from conjecture, mechanism from metaphor, and testable prediction from philosophical speculation. The book does not claim that EQT has solved physics. On the contrary, it repeatedly emphasizes what remains unfinished: the complete mathematical form of the master equation, the rigorous derivation of the Standard Model, quantitative predictions for cosmology, and experimental tests of the proposed frequency–consciousness relation. Its central value lies not in offering final answers, but in cultivating a disciplined way of thinking: classify the level of a claim, examine its cost, and ask what evidence would overturn it. In this sense, the book is both a journey through modern physics and a reflection on how science should proceed. It invites readers to see the universe not as a silent machine, but as a vast field of rhythms—some already detected through light, radio waves, gravitational waves, and neural oscillations, and many others still beyond our instruments. The part we can hear is science; the part we have not yet heard is the future.
As expected when I started out on this project, this has proved to be a complex and, at times, difficult story. After all, what was involved was tearing up the foundations of classical physics, which had been extraordinarily successful in explaining the macroscopic world about us, and replacing it by something radically different and non-intuitive in terms of our everyday experience. But the effort involved has been more than repaid by the very much deeper appreciation I have gained of the extraordinary works of the pioneers of quantum mechanics, both the theorists and the experimenters. If the brilliant theoretical researches of Planck, Einstein, Bohr, Heisenberg, Born, Jordan, Schrödinger, Pauli, Dirac and many others form the central core of this story, it should be remembered that their researches were inspired by the equally brilliant achievements of experimental physics. Another huge bonus has been a deepened understanding of quantum mechanics itself – if only I had these insights more than 50 years ago when I first encountered the subject. There is a great deal more that could be said. I must reiterate that I have presented a somewhat streamlined version of the story in order to ensure that there is some continuous pathway, however tortuous, to the way in which the new understandings came about. For a full appreciation of the complexity of the story and the numerous blind alleys and diversions which took place, there is no substitute for in-depth absorption in Mehra and Rechenberg's magisterial exposition of the history of quantum theory.
Time is an illusion. Although the laws of physics create a powerful impression that time is flowing, in fact there are only timeless 'nows'. In The End of Time, the British theoretical physicist Julian Barbour describes the coming revolution in our understanding of the world: a quantum theory of the universe that brings together Einstein's general theory of relativity - which denies the existence of a unique time - and quantum mechanics - which demands one. Barbour believes that only the most radical of ideas can resolve the conflict between these two theories: that there is, quite literally, no time at all. The End of Time is the first full-length account of the crisis in our understanding that has enveloped quantum cosmology. Unifying thinking that has never been brought together before in a book for the general reader, Barbour reveals the true architecture of the universe and demonstrates how physics is coming up sharp against the extraordinary possibility that the sense of time passing emerges from a universe that is timeless. The heart of the book is the author's lucid description of how a world of stillness can appear to be teeming with motion: in this timeless world where all possible instants coexist, complex mathematical rules of quantum mechanics bind together a special selection of these instants in a coherent order that consciousness perceives as the flow of time. Finally, in a lucid and eloquent epilogue, the author speculates on the philosophical implications of his theory: Does free will exist? Is time travel possible? How did the universe begin? Where is heaven? Does the denial of time make life meaningless? Written with exceptional clarity and elegance, this profound and original work presents a dazzlingly powerful argument that all will be able to follow, but no-one with an interest in the workings of the universe will be able to ignore.