Jun 5, 2025 06:53 PM
(This post was last modified: Jun 5, 2025 07:10 PM by Magical Realist.)
Provocative and deep exploration of the implications of quantum field theory for consciousness and reality per Frederico Faggin the inventor of the microprocessor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEo6eN9ZVnM&t=158s
"In a book in Italian: Irriducibile. La coscienza, la vita, i computer e la nostra natura (Mondadori, 2022) Federico Faggin proposed a theory of consciousness according to which consciousness is a purely quantum phenomenon, unique to each of us. This theory is supported by two quantum physics theorems: the no-cloning theorem and Holevo's theorem. The first states that a pure quantum state is not reproducible; the second limits the amount of measurable information to one classical bit for each qubit that describes the state. Therefore, it is possible to postulate that a quantum system that is in a pure state is aware of its state, since conscious experiences (qualia) have all the essential properties of pure states, i.e., it is private knowledge only minimally knowable from the outside. However, the mathematical representation of the experience (the pure state) does not describe the experience, which remains private and knowable only from within by the system that is in that state. No classical machine can ever be conscious given that classical information is reproducible (program and data can be copied perfectly), while the quantum state is private. Consciousness is therefore not linked to the functioning of the body and can continue to exist even after the death of the body. The body behaves like a drone controlled "top down" by consciousness. The new D'Ariano-Faggin theory is based on the theoretical studies of Professor Giacomo D'Ariano's studies, who derived quantum theory from principles based on information theory, and on the experiential, philosophical and scientific studies of Federico Faggin on the nature of consciousness."--- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_Faggin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEo6eN9ZVnM&t=158s
"In a book in Italian: Irriducibile. La coscienza, la vita, i computer e la nostra natura (Mondadori, 2022) Federico Faggin proposed a theory of consciousness according to which consciousness is a purely quantum phenomenon, unique to each of us. This theory is supported by two quantum physics theorems: the no-cloning theorem and Holevo's theorem. The first states that a pure quantum state is not reproducible; the second limits the amount of measurable information to one classical bit for each qubit that describes the state. Therefore, it is possible to postulate that a quantum system that is in a pure state is aware of its state, since conscious experiences (qualia) have all the essential properties of pure states, i.e., it is private knowledge only minimally knowable from the outside. However, the mathematical representation of the experience (the pure state) does not describe the experience, which remains private and knowable only from within by the system that is in that state. No classical machine can ever be conscious given that classical information is reproducible (program and data can be copied perfectly), while the quantum state is private. Consciousness is therefore not linked to the functioning of the body and can continue to exist even after the death of the body. The body behaves like a drone controlled "top down" by consciousness. The new D'Ariano-Faggin theory is based on the theoretical studies of Professor Giacomo D'Ariano's studies, who derived quantum theory from principles based on information theory, and on the experiential, philosophical and scientific studies of Federico Faggin on the nature of consciousness."--- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_Faggin