Evolution as a Quantum Process

We are quanta. We are each individuals and as such we feel separate from that which surrounds us. However the billions of us on the Planet are engaged in an ongoing quantum calculation. It is waves of our human actions that impact the Planet, solving for survival.

A quantum computer has the ability to calculate multiple possibilities simultaneously. For example, to solve a password problem a conventional computer would try all of the possible solutions, one at a time. A quantum computer would try all possible options at once, filtering out the failures and finally settling on one that would be implemented, while the others would act as if they were never even tried.

Seems to me that this is a pretty good description of how our mind works. We consider many options, evaluating them against each other in a virtual space where the actions are simulated. We finally settle on a plan of action and do it. The rejected options act as if they were never tried.

So, each agent in our system is like a quantum bit. Each one is a multifunction unit that contains its own processor, operating system, input/output devices, memory and power supply. The problem we are solving is how to grow, reproduce and disperse among the other quantum bits that form our Universe.

The only way this could work is if the system “knows” what each bit is doing in real time. The system has to be aware of the progress of all of the options being calculated at once. This is the coherent, holographic, quantum field property of the physical Universe.

This is very similar to the idea of multiple universes, except they all exist in a quantum virtual reality, while only one solution is manifest. A quantum calculation processes all possible outcomes at once, assessing probabilities, filtering and sorting, until a solution is reached. Once implemented, the solution becomes input for the next wave of calculations. The system is always trying to predict and validate its future. It does so in waves of repeating cycles.

This happens in our version of consciousness. We humans are constantly predicting our immediate future. We are constantly calculating velocities and trajectories of moving objects around us, while we keep track of our own location and movement. Will that truck arrive before i can cross the street, or not? Other mobile agents in our system are doing the same thing. Neurons are quite capable of acting the same way. They are constantly predicting what their input should be and react when it is not as expected. This pattern of process repeats throughout Natural Systems.

Human beings are agents within the system and act like quantum bits. We are a great example of quantum computation. Take a task force attempting to solve a problem. Each member takes on the solution as a goal. Each member embarks on a search limited by what they see as the best possible solution. All members are in contact and share their ideas. They each choose the possible solution based on their perspective, while being aware of the progress of other possibilities. When a consensus is reached, action follows a single path and the many other possibilities vanish as if they were never considered.

In this model, the quantum process is consciousness in action. Just as we share ideas and reach conclusions, so do our neurons. So do the lactose intolerant cells of e.coli when confronted with only lactose for food. So do stem cells. And so does water, coherent electromagnetic fields, and plasma. All is quantum consciousness, with ours being a subset. Just as our subset produces a single point of consciousness from trillions of cells, so does every other subset up an down the scale. On the one end we have single cells endowed with a sense of self, while species, ecosystems and Gaia herself show the same ability.

What do stem cells, superbugs, dopamine neurons have in common? The common thread is that these cells change their structure in response to incoming information. They adapt to changes in the environment. It doesn’t require generations for natural selection to bring about adaptive change, cells adapt to the environment in real time. Natural selection tests the validity of the adaptive changes, but they originate at the cellular level. In other words, direction, purpose and goal oriented behavior are present and active at the cellular level. This system isn’t guided by blind chance, but specific targeted goals, like growth, reproduction and dispersal.

The Straight Arrow of Time

Of course time isn’t a straight arrow. It is curved like space. It cycles, spins, orbits, loops and otherwise always comes back on itself. If you trace time backwards in memory, it loops back becoming almost indistinguishable from the future. Put all these cycles together and they grow like a fractal until the radius is so large it appears to be a straight line. Looking at time this way makes predicting the future relatively easy.

So What?

This is a text version of the Flash Movie promoting my book.

All organisms alive today, plus the remains of all living things that have gone before, all the organic compounds, all fossils, all fossil fuels, all the biomass accumulated by this planet over billions of years, exists because information coded into DNA was accessed, read and acted upon by a cell. Before any one of those cells could grow, before any living tissue could be manufactured, before any polypeptide chains could be assembled, before anything could happen in ANY cell, DNA information had to be processed. Information processing is the very first act of Life.

“So what?” says the guy in the back. Good question.
What are we talking about… Information processing. The first info processor we think of is a computer. Our civilization is driven by computers processing information. What makes computers so powerful is that they represent a fundamental process. Everything we see in this physical Universe is the result of a process. So a computer can be programmed to mimic just about anything out there.

A computer can do this because it processes ones and zeros, following the same basic steps as any process. It starts with input and processes that input into output. Our nervous system processes information from the environment and presents it’s output to us as consciousness. Both are information processing in action.

Okay, at the micro level, information processing is a pretty good model for how things work. When we take info processing to the macro level, we have billions of computers hooked together in a global network, each one cranking out billions of those process cycles every few seconds. Altogether they generate all of the content the internet is displaying right now, including this.

It has taken millions of pretty smart people several decades, to figure out how to build and maintain this incredibly complex network. In the process they have discovered a set of mathematical laws that govern the growth of networks in complex systems. They have found that these laws are the same regardless of scale or implementation.

That is, the rules are the same for computer networks, neural networks, cardiovascular systems, river systems, social networks, bureaucracies and just about anything that grows to move matter or information. All along Nature has been following the same fractal power laws that we have developed for the building of the internet.

So, the internet represents fundamental process, and a global interconnected system of processors, that mimic Natural systems. The language of information technologies provides a common vocabulary for discussing everything from Biological Systems and Evolution to Quantum Mechanics and Consciousness.

What we have here is a universal language that describes information processing and its networks in minute detail. This is the language of the 21st century, taught in schools all over the world. This is the language and model of process that we need to give us a common denominator for a unified theory of reality.

Once we start to look at biological systems as being information processors first, with protein production being secondary output, a very different picture emerges of their structure and organization. Come along with me while we explore this exciting territory.

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Stephan Wolfram: Computing a theory of everything

Stumbled on this today…

Could he and i be thinking along the same lines? I have a lot more to learn about his theories, but they ring true to the LifeOS model, so far.

Once we start to look at the Universe as a computational process, we can see some basic rules that are the same up and down the scale. Those simple rules process at the quantum level to a cosmic outcome.

The Blind Painter

The Blind Painter. Have you seen this video? It is an example of how a systems view can help us understand how perception works. He was born with no eyes, yet paints landscapes and buildings with great skill.

He is demonstrating the feedback loop of perception. The senses input information from the environment, the perception apparatus, which includes the whole body in it’s scope, produces an internal model of the environment, that the hands use to paint. Remove eyes from the loop and it continues with what is available. The system demands that the perception loop be functional in all mobile species.

Even single celled creatures have a rudimentary perception loop going on. Like the lactose intolerant e. coli or stem cells reacting to their environment to form bone and muscle(Bruce Lipton). The intelligence is in the system.

Fractal Patterns of Behavior

For me writing is first and foremost a process for my own self improvement. It has always been the best therapy for dealing with my own life’s twists and turns. Writing things down stretches a moment of time out into something you can study. Over time, it allows us to notice repeating patterns in your own thinking and behavior.

The writing of a book about Life as a system, has forced me to think that way for the better part of a decade. That has been good for me. It has allowed me to see my own behavior as part of a larger pattern of species interaction. It is easier not to take events personally when we realize that they are but a tiny part of a larger fractal pattern. Everything we do is part of a larger pattern.

One of the advantages of being an old fart is that you can spot repeating patterns that are easy to miss the first time around. Just as important is to notice that their are no patterns that DON’T repeat. The world runs on repeated patterns. That’s easy to miss when you are young, and everything seems to be new and getting newer. It takes awhile to recognize that you are in the growth phase of your life and that it won’t always be that way. We all grow, mature, and eventually die. We are not alone, the whole system cycles through this basic sequence.

One of the patterns that becomes obvious, is the way new concepts, whether they be technological, biological or social, tend to clump, divide and bond during their evolution. The technological cycle has gotten shorter and shorter, making these patterns easier to spot. Take the invention of the automobile as a starting point. At first there were dozens of car makers. That list continued to grow until the more successful operations began to absorb the smaller ones. The numbers shrink until there are but a few manufacturers. They grow into inefficient behemoths, and begin to produce spin offs, that take advantage of their own growth cycle. Then there are newcomers that also benefit from the growth phase.

This same pattern repeats itself with every new invention or technological breakthrough. In biological systems we can see the same patterns repeat in populations, from single cells to human civilizations.

In the current growth phase of the transpersonal revolution, the movement is going through the same growth patterns as any industry. During the early growth phase, anyone can start up a new company, hang out a shingle and start to build an identity. Each new entry will have unique features that attract an audience. Each one is trying to build the best feature set, based on their view of what that entails. Nobody really knows what will be the best in the long run, but everyone that thinks they do, starts up another version.

I see this same pattern repeating in daily conversations, as well as the larger social movements. Specifically, the recent rift between Earth2.0 and The Venus Project, the ongoing discussion at evolver.net about defining that movement, and my own individual discussions. Nobody wants to dilute their vision of what the best feature/belief set will be. And so we have people being divided by minor detail differences, seeming to ignore that they are sharing a larger vision. It is like a competition to see who can be the most cooperative, that has gotten out of hand.

Don’t take it all tooo seriously. We are all in the same business. Don’t let our minor disagreements get in the way of the big picture. Sometimes it is just better to smile and nod your head, than to quibble over details. Don’t let today’ s disagreements become an obstacle to future cooperation.

cheers,
jim

Information Processing Loops

This same feedback diagram works for information processing in general. Whether a computer or a biological cell, the same steps are followed. Input, process and output modify matter, which is then, memory of the process.

We can see this same cycle of process repeated throughout the Natural World. For example, our perception/action cycle follows this same simple pattern. Information flows into the eye, to the brain. There it is processed and commands sent out to the hand, which interacts with the object.

We tend to focus on eye and brain action, forgetting that we are part of a loop that includes our action or behavior in the environment. Anytime there is information transferred, it is part of a loop. Just like Karma, that info is coming around again… to it’s source.

Now let’s consider that the psychedelic experience is a transfer of information. That in itself is a leap for some folks. The predominant view is that nothing happens but distortion of the senses, or chemicals in the brain. The real experts in these matters are the shamans, who say they gain information from plant spirits. So, if we admit to an intelligent universe, we just about have to consider that the shaman is right. In this respect, LifeOS agrees wholeheartedly with the shaman. Information traveling in loops, remember.

Behavior? How has our behavior been affected by psychedelics? Yours and mine, our culture in the last 50 years? How about historically? The influence of the big four, amanita muscaria, stropharia cubensis, ergot and alcohol, in human history, cannot be denied. From a system’s point of view, they have operated as control mechanisms in human behavior. For centuries we have followed these four gods, wreaking havoc on the environment, cutting ourselves out of the feedback loops.

Now, we are listening to different plant spirits and even the messages from the old ones seem to have changed. The sooner we face up to what our plant spirits are telling us, the sooner we can get back in the loop.

cheers,
jim

What is Consciousness?

What is consciousness? That which observes fields of information, matter and energy, and calls them reality. Need it be more complex than that? Fields of information, matter and energy comprise our environment. Our consciousness interprets the environment and acts within it. We watch.

If that isn’t enough of a definition for you, there are more involved version to be found almost everywhere you look. Everyone wants to take a shot at it; we all have one. There is Consciousness Online, Center for Consciousness Studies(U of A), as well as dozens of universities, new age retreats and thousands of blogs that tag themselves as relating to the subject. The variety of descriptions reflects the difficulty of the enterprise. Every individual is describing a unique view of “reality”, that has been learned within a unique context. Every field of study has its own unique viewpoint, (piece of the elephant) that influences their observations. On top of that, each discipline develops a unique jargon to describe what they “see”. I call it the Tower of Babel approach. The more you read, the worse it gets; agreement on this subject is rare.

What this discussion really needs is a common denominator. The inquiry needs to be scaled to a level of functionality, where language and terminology can be used in common.

Rather than looking at consciousness from our human perspective, we need to look at how reality and consciousness relate to biological systems in general. Rather than concentrating on the complex internal details, let’s look at how the process functions at this higher level. At this level, the functionality of mobile species is simple: they move, eat, grow, expel waste and reproduce. We don’t care what goes on in their heads, just that they function within the environmental system they inhabit. However, we can note that the ability of an agent to be aware of its surroundings, is essential to three out the five functions. In its simplest form, awareness involves the processing of information. Here we can find some common ground.

The studies of complex systems, quantum mechanics, cybernetics, cellular biology, single celled organisms, chaos theory, fractals, holography, bioelectrics and information technologies share some common conceptual underpinnings. They are all explorations into information processing. There are many rules and laws that are consistent across these fields of study. They share common formulae for the construction of networks, for example.

The language developed by information technologies is known and understood across all languages, national and cultural boundaries. It was developed with functionality as it’s goal, and information processing and distribution it’s primary functions. Biological systems exhibit nearly identical patterns of functionality.

We find the same patterns of process in action in cells where DNA finds, copies and transfers genetic information. The universal rules and laws governing robust digital networks, outlined by Information Technologies offers the foundation for a common language to discuss consciousness, biological life and the material universe, as well.

The second common denominator is that consciousness, cellular activity, quantum mechanics, atomic structure are characterized by fields. Just as our consciousness is the result of waves of firing neurons(fields), matter is the result of waves of atomic particles interacting through fields of force(energy).

From plasma experiments, to growing tips of plants, to firing neurons, it is fields, processing information, that guide interactions. Consciousness is just such a field, processing input and directing actions. Looking at it in this light, all biological processes cycle through a phase of pure information, on the way to a phase of pure matter. Once it is seen as a fundamental function of biological systems, rather than an exclusive attribute of human evolution, consciousness reveals itself.

cheers,
jim