An evolutionary picture for quantum physics

Walter Fusseder

Widespread unjustified views on the role of the observer, the individuality of quantum processes, the relation between decoherence and irreversibility, Bell's quest for `beables', the direction of time, and the concept of experience are revealed, whereby a better understanding is achieved of what the evolutionary picture is all about and what is regarded as missing in already existing realistic pictures.

Ig. Tamm

Wolfram Schommers

Wolfram Schommers

The laws of classical mechanics and quantum theory do not distinguish between the past and the future. But a lot of phenomena tell us that the "arrow of time" points only in one direction. For example, in biology we discover evolutionary processes leading to diversification and increasing complexity; it is a typical feature of such evolutionary processes that "forward" in time is possible but "backward" in time is impossible. At what level can phenomena like these be described? There is another problem in connection with time: within usual quantum theory, space-coordinates and time are not symmetrical to each other, which is in contrast to the basic results of special theory of relativity. In usual quantum theory coordinates are operators and play the role of statistical quantities; time however does not behave statistically and remains a simple parameter when we go from classical to quantum mechanics. For this reason there is no uncertainty relation for the time and energy within usual quantum theory which would agree in its physical content with that for the coordinates and momenta. The purpose of this paper is to show, on the basis of new aspects, that both one-sidedness of time and its uncertainty are charateristics at the fundamental level of quantum theory. We have extended usual quantum theory on the basis of space-time arguments. In this connection a time-operator appeared and there is in general temporal asymmetry at the microscopic level. The picture might be important in the description of phenomena with an "arrow of time", i.e., processes which belong to the physics of becoming. Furthermore, we have derived an uncertainty relation for the energy and time which agrees in its physical content with the uncertainty relation for the momentum and the coordinate; this relation is different from that of usual quantum theory. Within the frame of this physical picture all the concepts (diversity, natural selection, mutation), which are presently used in connection with the evolution of biological systems, are already established at the quantum mechanical level and, therefore, our theoretical picture might also be the foundation for the explanation of the phenomena at the biological (macro-molecular) level.

Robert Prentner

The interface theory of perception maintains that sensory systems evolved to present agents with an 'adaptive desktop' rather than a veridical picture of the world. Physical reality is an evolutionary construct. By contrast, consciousness and agency are fundamental, irreducible elements not emergent from physics. Building on this framework, the quantum interface theory (QIT) is introduced. Several core quantum-mechanical features, such as entanglement, superposition, and decoherence, are artefacts of the interface. Moreover, the formalism of 'quantum conscious agents' is sketched to provide a foundation for QIT. Thereby, perception is modelled as a quantum instrument, enabling the study of back-reactions on agent– environment dynamics. Consciousness exhibits quantum-like properties when it 'measures itself', leading to the following prediction: signatures of quantum coherence in biological systems correlate to consciousness only if they modulate an agent's interface dynamics. By integrating evolutionary theory, quantum information, and metaphysics, QIT offers a unifying framework for modern consciousness science.

E. SchrödingerP, R. Hartree, Walter Kohn +1 more