Or *The self-reflective universe*. On Tuesday, September 17, 2019 at 4:37:38 AM UTC-5, Philip Thrift wrote: > > > *Modeling observers as physical systems representing the world from > within: Quantum theory as a physical and self-referential theory of > inference* > John Realpe-Gómez [ https://www.linkedin.com/in/quantumself/ ] > https://arxiv.org/abs/1705.04307 > > > "message-passing algorithms and stochastic processes written in a > quantum-like manner" > "Future-past symmetry and quantum-like Markov processes" > > > In 1929 Szilard pointed out that the physics of the observer may play a > role in the analysis of experiments. The same year, Bohr pointed out that > complementarity appears to arise naturally in psychology where both the > objects of perception and the perceiving subject belong to 'our mental > content'. Here we argue that the formalism of quantum theory can be derived > from two related intuitive principles: (i) inference is a physical process > performed by physical systems, observers, which are part of the > experimental setup---this implies non-commutativity and imaginary-time > quantum mechanics; (ii) experiments must be described from a first-person > perspective---this leads to self-reference, complementarity, and real-time > quantum dynamics. This approach sheds new light on the foundations of > quantum theory and suggests fundamental equations in physics are typically > of second order due to the physical nature of the observer. It also > suggests some experimental conjectures: (i) the quantum of action could be > understood as the result of the additional energy required to transition > from unconscious to conscious perception; (ii) humans can observe a single > photon of visible light; (iii) self-aware systems and the neural correlates > of the self should be composed of two complementary sub-systems, much like > the DNA molecule is composed of two strands---this may help explain the > double-hemisphere architecture of the brain. Moreover, this approach may > help bridge the gap between science and human experience. We discuss the > potential implications of these ideas for the modern research programs on > consciousness and contemplative science. As side results: (i) we show that > message-passing algorithms and stochastic processes can be written in a > quantum-like manner; (ii) we provide evidence that non-stoquasticity, a > quantum computational resource, may be related to non-equilibrium phenomena. > > > > @philipthrift >
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