This 2018 article by Amit Goswami provides us a history of quantum physics and a deeper discussion of some important terms used in the science. Goswami talks about how the findings of quantum physics supports religious beliefs of oneness, as well as the practical value of this belief.

This article also shows us why many scientists adhere to scientific materialism, even when they use quantum principles of entanglement, non-locality, and the centrality of consciousness in their own researches. Goswami insists that even though quantum physics was developed in response to the quest for understanding the behavior of the submicroscopic base of matter, its principles still affect the bulk macro level. After all, quantum physics deals with the very basis of all physical matter.

This article is important because it not only deal with the principles of quantum physics, but also how these principles can be translated to the human quest for value and meaning.

Implications for AI

Quantum physics is so profound, our materialistic brains cannot grasp its entirety. Scientists who continue to adhere to materialistic beliefs, despite using quantum principles are overwhelmed by their own memories of a science that is already passé. Their inability to forget is also due to technology. Pens, laptops, and computers have created a record of what was and scientists tend to think that these are what is.

Technology can only record what our human senses can observe, hence the record we keep are those of the realm of Newtonian physics – the very science that is the basis of materialism. But there are other unobservable realms which are just as real as the physical – feelings, thoughts, and intuitions. These are within ourselves, but they are also connected to a quantum consciousness. Our physical bodies provide the boundaries so that our experiences and manifestations of the quantum consciousness are differentiated. But our processing of the “signal” coming from this quantum consciousness will depend on whether our physical body is “whole” or not.

From this statement alone we can already see the problem with the transhumanist effort to create a complete replica for the human being [see What Is Transhumanism?]. For one, every physical body is different. With the differences in physical body comes the diversity in experience. Standardizing the human body would mean standardizing experience. And with everyone experiencing the same thing means that there will be no real development that can happen, no real creativity can be expressed.

What kind of a world would that become then? Literature such as A Brave New World can give us a clue to this kind of future. In a purely materialistic world, the quest for human purpose is meaningless. And for a truly living, breathing, and feeling human being, that kind of life is intolerable. No wonder more and more young people are committing suicide today. If that is the kind of life they are moving towards, then there is no sense to continue living.

If we continue to deny the emergence of a post-materialist science simply because it is difficult, or that it doesn’t follow our current conventions, then there is no hope for humanity. But if we begin to open our eyes and strive to overcome the incoherence of the new sciences, to acknowledge the intangible reality that is slowly, but firmly making itself felt, then we might just discover the fullness of human life.

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