ThisisamodifiedEnglishtranslationofapaperpublishedinCzechinCeskoslovenskafyziologie,2005,

vol.54,pp.2631.
[email protected]

Aquantumhypothesisofbrainfunctionand
consciousness

StanislavReinis

DepartmentofPsychology
UniversityofWaterloo
Waterloo,ON.,Canada
And
DepartmentofNormal,PathologicalandClinicalPhysiology
ThirdMedicalFaculty,CharlesUniversity,Prague

RobertF.Holub

DepartmentofPhysics
ColoradoSchoolofMines,Golden,Colorado

PavelSmrz

SchoolofMathematicalandPhysicalSciencesTheUniversityofNewcastle,NSW2308Australia

Abstract
Humanconsciousness,thehumansoul,thehumanmind,humansubjectivefeelingshavebeena
matterofconcern,notonlyforphilosophersandtheologians,butrecentlyalsoforneuroscientists,
physicistsandothers.Ourapproachtounderstandingthisproblemisbasedonthefactthateven
thesimplestbrainfunctionsdependontheactivityofanenormousnumberofneurons,ontheir
synapticconnectionsandonassociatedionicandelectricalevents.Thesynapticdelayineachof
thosesynapsesisatleast0.5msandthereforetheparallelandserialinteractionsbetweenmillions
ofneuronswouldtakeaverylongtime,toolongfortheindividual.sadequateinteractionwiththe
environment.Therefore,theremustbesomeothermechanismgoverningtheinteractionsoflarge
numbersofneurons,locatedeveninremotepartsofthebrain.However,theneuronalfunction
withaspreadingofdepolarizations,hyperpolarizationsandrepolarizations,gradedandungraded
electricalpotentials,ionicmovementsandsmalllocalelectricalfieldscreatesauniqueandvery
complicatedsystemofthemovementsofsubatomicparticles.Whenmovingfromonepositionto
another,eachelectronfillsalargespaceanditsprecisepositioncannotbeexactlydetermined.
Thusbrainfunctiondependsonthemovementsofanenormousnumberofelectronswhich
influenceeachotheratthesubatomiclevel,eventhoughtheirpositioncannotbedetermined.
Therefore,besiderelativelyslow"classical"electrochemicalinteractions,rapidquantum
interactionsoriginatinginfunctioningcellmembranesmayparticipateinmany,perhapsinall,
brainfunctions.Together,allthemovingelectronsproduceanonlocalsystemwhichwecallthe
RealHumanSoul,RHS,whichiscreatedbythefunctioningneuronsand,atthesametime,can
alsoinfluenceotherneurons.Thus,itcreatesaconnectionbetweenallfunctioningpartsofthe
brain.Thebrainthenfunctionsasaunifiedsysteminwhicheverythingisinterconnectedandis
abletointeract.Viewedthus,thebrainfunctionsasaquantumcomputer.

Thissystem,theRHS,isnotidenticalwithconsciousness.Onlyundercertainconditionsdoessome
areaofthebraincreatesubjectiveconsciousness,whichmaybeoneoftheproductsoftheRHS.
Subjectiveconsciousnessisprobablybasedonsimpleparticlecommunication,their.proto
consciousness.,butismuchmorecomplex,duetotheneuronalanalysisofsensoryinputandother
cognitivefunctionsoftheCNS.

Introduction

Thereareseveraldefinitionsofconsciousness,whichusuallydependonthephilosophicalviewsof
theirauthors.Letususeasimpledefinitionofconsciousness,asfoundontheInternet
(http://www.selfknowledge.com/19677.htm):.Thestateofbeingconsciousknowledgeofone.sown
existence,sensations,mentaloperations,acts,etc..Consciousnessisthus,ontheonehand,the
recognitionofthemindor.ego.ofitsactsandaffectionsinotherwords,theselfaffirmationthat
certainmodificationsaremine..SirW.Hamilton..

Describingthemechanismswhichcausecertaineventsinthebraintobesubjectivelyperceivedis
the.hard.problemofneuroscience.Consciousnesscannotbereducedtoneuronalfiringand
neuronalinteractions.Ononehand,therearebrainactivitiesthatcanbeobjectivelyobserved,
recordedandmeasuredbyanexternalinvestigator.Ontheotherhand,thereexistsourprivate,
subjectiveperceptionofsomeoftheseevents.Consciousnessisourprimaryrealitythroughit,we
perceiveourselvesandourenvironmentweplanandaccomplishouractions,evaluatethem,think
aboutthem,recordthem.Somebelievethatconsciousnessisanemergentpropertyofbrain
activity,othersassumethatthereisadualityofmatterandspirit,andthatthereexistsan
immaterialprinciple,ahomunculus,controllingbrainfunctions.Buttheremightbesomeother
possibilitiesaswell.

TheInteractionsofNeuronsintheBrain

Thehumanbrainiscomposedofbillionsofneuronsandgliacells.Thereisanextracellularspace
betweenthem,filledwithfluid.Thisspaceisratherminimal,comprisingabout5%ofbrain
volume.Theneuronscommunicateonewithanotherthroughatleastninemechanisms:

1. 1.classicalsynaptictransmission,whenthenerveimpulsepassesbetweenneuronsthrough
synapses,withasynapticdelayofatleast0.5ms
2. 2.diffusionofneurotransmittersandneuropeptidesfromnerveendingsandfromaxonal
varicositiesintotheextracellularspace,wherethesesubstancesmayinfluencealarger
numberofneuronsandgliacellsatonce
3. 3.neuromodulation,whereneuropeptidesinfluencesynaptictransmissiongeneratedby
neurotransmitters
4. 4.hormonesproducedelsewhereinthebody,whichinfluencetargetcellsthatpossessthe
correspondinghormonalreceptors
 5. 5.transneuronallytransmittedproteinsresponsiblefortrophicinteractions
6. 6.ionicchangesintheextracellularspace
7. 7.ephaptictransmission,accomplishedbythedirectinjectionofelectricalcurrentfromone
cellintoanother
8. 8.spreadingofsmallelectricalfieldsaroundtheexcitedneurons
9. 9.automaticexcitationofthepacemakerneuronsbymetabolicprocesses.

Allthesearelocalphenomenabelongingintheareaofclassicalphysicsanditsramifications.The
resultofneuronalactivationisanactionpotentialgeneratedbymovementsofelectronsandions,
e.g.ofpotassium,calciumandsodium.Aneuronproducinganactionpotentialusuallyrequiresat
leasttensynapticinputsfromotherneuronstoreachitsfiringlevel.Therefore,thefunctionofthe
centralnervoussystemdependsonmanyserialandparallelinteractionsofmassesofindividual
neurons.Eachneuronisconnectedtohundredsandthousandsofotherneurons.Inthebrain,we
mayobserveconvergenceanddivergence,feedbacksandcirculatingnerveimpulses.The
reverberatingneuronalcircuitsmayberatherlong,lastinguptoonesecond(Reinis,1997).All
theseeventsslowdownthefunctioningofneuronalnetworkscontainingmillionsofneurons,so
suchsequencesofneuronalfiringcannotaccomplishthefunctionofmorecomplexneuronal
systemsthatareexpectedtorespondinareal,sufficientlyshorttime.

Despitetheseimperfections,thehumanbrainisauniquelycomplexsystemofelectrochemical
activitiesunlikeanythingintheknownuniverse.

Isthereanothertypeofsignaltransmissioninthebrain?
Asasynaptictransmissiontakesatleast0.5ms,transmissionacrossthousandsofsynapsesmay
takehundredsorthousandsofmilliseconds.Thetransmissionofnerveimpulsesalonganaxonis
alsorelativelyslow,between0.5m/secand120m/sec.Asanexample,morethanfiftypercentof
nervefibersinthecorpuscallosumareunmyelinatedslowfiberswithatransmissionspeedof0.5
m/sec.

Forthisreason,wemustsearchforanother,morerapidmechanismofneuronalinteractionsto
explainthespeedofsomefastreactionsinthenervoussystem.Synaptictransmissionandaxonal
transferofnerveimpulsesaretooslowtoorganizecoordinatedactivityinlargeareasofthecentral
nervoussystem.Numerousobservationsconfirmthisview.

Forexample,theanalysisofvisualinputisrathercomplicatedandtimedemanding.Thevisual
pathwaybeginsintheretina,wherethefirstanalysisofthevisualimageisaccomplished.Nerve
impulsespassthroughapproximatelytwomillionparallelnervefibersforthemostpartintothe
lateralgeniculatebodyandthenintotheprimaryvisualcortexV1(area17).Thistransmissionisa
speedyone,takingjustafewmilliseconds.However,aconsiderableportionofthecerebralcortex,
millionsofsynapses,areinvolvedinthefurtheranalysisofthevisualimage.Theshape,color,and
positionoftheobjectandthespeedofitsmovementareevaluatedseparatelyandfinally,these
attributesoftheimagearecombinedandintegratedintothementalimageoftheobservedobject.
Theappearanceoftheobservedobjectiscomparedwithmemorytraces,emotionsandpast
experience.Theobject.smeaningisrecognizedintheinferotemporalcortex.Thiswholeprocedure
couldnotbehandledwithoutrapidcoordinationfarexceedingthespeedofmultiplesynaptic
transmissions.Otherwise,thetimeforthisanalysiswouldmakethevisualinputuseless.Letus
imagineanicehockeyorabaseballplayerwho,inafractionofasecond,realizesthepresenceofa
puckorabaseball,analyzesitsposition,itsspeedandthedirectionitismoving,andrespondstoit
andtothepresenceofotherplayersbyacomplexbodymovement.Thatwouldbeimpossible
withoutsomeaccelerationoftheinterneuronalconnections.Withaccumulatedsynapticdelays,
therewouldbenointerestinggametowatch.

Intheauditorysystem,thereisanumberofexamplesaswell.Libermannin1970wrotethatthe
understandingofhumanspeechanditsformationissimplynotpossible,becauseneuronal
mechanismsaretooslowforthisprocess.Theauditorypathwaypassesfromtheinnerearthrough
thefibersofthespiralganglionintothenucleusacousticusinthemedulla,intothecolliculus
inferior,intothemedialgeniculatebody,intotheprimaryandsecondaryauditorycorticesand
finallyintothehigheranalyticalcorticalcenters.Ateachoftheselevels,theincomingsoundis
analyzedagainandagainbysystemsofneuronalinteractions,neuronalloopsandfeedbacks.The
auditorybrainstempotentialsarestillveryfast,belowtenmilliseconds.Ultimately,theauditory
inputreachestheWernickeareaofthecerebralcortexwhichisscannedformemoriesofword
soundsandforthemeaningofthewords,whereeachlettersoundandeachsyllableisdetectedand
adefinitemeaningattachedtoit.Thelimbicsystemprovidesemotionalcontenttotheperceived
speech,andaresponseisdeterminedinthecontextofstoredmemoriesandideas.Thisresponseis
thentransferredtoBroca.sareaofspeech,totheseveralothercorticalmotorcenters,tothe
respiratorycentersandtothemusclesofthemouth,pharynxandlarynx.Allthisisaverycomplex
processwhichcouldnotbehandledwithoutthespeedycommunicationandcorrelationofvarious
brainfunctions.Lackingextremelyrapidcommunicationbetweenneurons,thisprocesscouldnot
beaccomplishedinrealtime.

Therearesomeotherfunctionsoftheauditorysystemwhichcannotbeexplainedby
straightforwardsynaptictransmission.Theauditorysystemisabletodeterminethedirectionfrom
whichasoundiscomingbycomparingthearrivalofthesoundintobothears.But,ifwecalculate
thedistancebetweentheearsandthespeedofsound,thenitisobviousthatoneeargetsthesound
onlymicrosecondsearlierthantheother.KlumppandEady(1956)showedthatatthefrequencyof
1kHz,thetimedifferencewhichgivesareasonableimpressionofthedirectionofthesoundsource
iselevenmicroseconds.Evenwiththeuseofplaceandvolleyprinciples,itisimpossibletoexplain
howthisdifferenceisdistinguishedwhentheknownsynapticdelayisatleast500microseconds.
Thehumanearisalsoabletorecognizefrequenciesto16to20kHz.Thatcorrespondstoa
wavelengthof50microseconds.Thevolleyprincipleplaysacertainrolehereagain,andwewere
abletodocumentit(Reinis,1997),butstill,thesynapticdelayprecludesafinearrangementof
nerveimpulses.Thereareanimalspecieswhichhearfrequenciesofupto120kHzandhere,the
explanationthateachwavecorrespondstooneneuronalspikedoesnotmakesense.

Thisparadoxisevenmoreapparentinsomespeciesofbats,whoseanalysisofsoundrequires
equallyshorttimeintervals.Searchingforinsectsflyinginthedarkbyecholocation,thesebatscan
discriminateintervalsintherangeofmicrosecondsandevenless.Theyareabletodistinguishthe
sizeoftheirpreywhichmightbeonly3mm.Thiscorrespondstoatimeintervalofaboutone
microsecond(Saillantetal.,1993).Aspecializedareaofthecerebralcortex,theDopplerShifted
ConstantFrequencyArea(DSCF),analyzessmalldeviationsinthefrequencyoforiginallyemitted
sound.Oncemore,thisanalysisistooquicktobeeasilyexplainedbysynaptictransmission.

Thesearesomespecificexamplesofageneralrulestatingthatundernormalconditions,thereis
onlyonestreamofconsciousnessdespitetheinvolvementofanumberofparallelneuronalsystems.
Subjectively,wereceivemanysensoryinputsatonce:visual,auditory,tactile,thermic,olfactory.
Alltheseinputsareanalyzedatdifferenttimeintervalsandindifferentlocationsinthebrainand
yettheyinteractandweperceivethemassimultaneousevents.Thesesystemscommunicateone
withanother,althoughtheyarelocatedinmanyareasofthebrain,primarilyintheneocortexand
alsointhesubcorticalareas,andthiscommunicationmustbeveryrapid,despitetheirrelative
distancesonefromanother.Thestateofconsciousnessisaccompaniedbywavesofelectrical
activitywithafrequencyofabout40cyclespersecondwhichtravelfromtheoccipitalareas
forward(PariandLlinas,1995).Suchwavesinvolvelargenumbersofneuronsandevenlarger
numbersofneuronalconnections.Theymustbeorganizedinameaningfulway,andundoubtedly
compriseahugenumberofserialandparalleltransmissions,feedbacksandcomplicatedcircuits,
containingtensandhundredsofmillionsofneurons.

Someeventsinthebrainhavebeenobservedthatseemtoshiftthetimesandsuccessionofcertain
events.Thus,Kornhuberandhisgroup(Deeckeetal.,1970)foundthatvoluntaryflexingofa
fingerisprecededbyacorticalreadinesspotentialinthecerebralcortex.Thisreadinesspotential
comesoneortwosecondsbeforethemusclecontraction.Thistimeintervalisobviouslynot
sufficientforthecontroloffastandefficientmovement.Ifeachofourmusclecontractionswere
precededbysuchalongintervalofmovementpreparation,nocomplexmovementswouldbe
possibleinrealtime.

BenjaminLibet.sexperimentsfollowedKornhuber.sstudies.Theymayalsobeconsideredevidence
oftimedisproportionsintheCNS(Libet1978,Libetetal.,1979,Libetetal.,1983).Inonetypical
experiment,Libetobservedadelayinacorticalreadinesspotential,indicatingthetimeofdecision
tomakeamovement.Thistimewaslongerthanthetimeofonsetoftheactualaccomplished
movement.Subjectsweretoldtoflextheirwristatanytimetheychose,buttorecordthepointat
whichtheydecidedtodosobynoticingthepositionofadotonaclockface.Libetwasableto
recordreadinesspotentialswhichoccurredinthesupplementarymotorarea.Heshowedthatthey
occurredabout550msafterthestimulus,whilethemovementitselfoccurredearlier,within200
ms.Thus,therewasatimedifferenceofabout350msbetweentheactitself,whichoccurredfirst,
andtheconsciousintentiontodoit,whichoccurredlater.Inanotherstudy,heshowedthatif
subjectshavetorecordthepositionofamovingdotwhentheyaregivenaskinstimulus,they
actuallyrecordedthesensationbeforeithadactuallyhappenedbytensofmilliseconds.Discussions
concerningthesepapersimplythatconsciousnesssomehowmanipulatesthetimebaseofthebrain
functions(e.g.DennettandKinsbourne,1992).Thisantedatingcannotbeexplainedbyanyknown
neuralmechanism.TheseexperimentsmightbeexplainedbyareversaloftimebytheCNS,but
thatideaissomewhatabsurd.

AnothersimilarcaseistheColorPhiphenomenon.ThePhiphenomenonmeansthatiftwopoints
inthevisualfieldareilluminatedsuccessivelywithinatimeintervaloflessthan100ms,thereisan
impressionofmovement.Televisionormotionpicturesserveasanexample.Whenthesetwopoints
haveadifferentcolor,redandgreenforinstance,thenthecolorchangesinthemiddlebetweentwo
points,thatis,beforethesecondpointisshown(KolersandvonGr|nau,1976).Thisobservationis
presentevenduringthefirstexposure,whichmeansthatthecolorchangeispredicted,andnota
matteroflearning.VanderWaalsandRoelofs(1931)proposedthatsomesensoryactivitiesinvolve
abackwardprojectionoftime.

Theremaybeotherexamples..Rabbitjumps.describedbyGeldardandSherrick(1972)andthe
theoryofequipotentialityofthecerebralcortexbyLashleymayalsoeventuallybeconsideredan
indicationoffastnonsynapticconnectivityinthebrain.AccordingtoLashley,memoriesare
widelydistributedacrossthebrain.Therefore,theymustcommunicateonewithalltheothersvery
quickly.Lashley.stheoryofequipotentialityisnotwidelyacceptedanymoreandtherefore,we
mentionithereonlyasapossibility.

Averyshorthistoryoftherelationofquantumtheoryandconsciousness

Intheliteratureonquantummechanics,wemayfindanumberofinteresting,butsomewhat
differing,viewsinthisrespect.WernerHeisenbergwrotein1971:

.Thesameorganizingforceswhichgaveaformtonatureinallitsformsarealsoresponsibleforthe
structureofourmind..

ErwinSchroedingerwentevenfurther(1967):

"Itisverydifficultforustotakestockofthefactthatthelocalizationofthepersonality,ofthe
consciousmind,insidethebodyisonlysymbolic,justanaidforpracticaluse."

Schroedingerisprobablynotcorrectinhisbeliefthatconsciousnessislocatedoutsidethebrain,
somewhereintheuniverse.Itis,weassume,thehuman(andperhapssomeotheraswell)brain
thatproducesit,andthecontentsofourconsciousactivities,thoughts,memoriesandintentions
dependonsensoryinputandalargenumberofcoordinatedneuronalinteractions.Consciousness
cannotbereducedtoneuronalactivity,thefunctionsofneurotransmittersandneuronalspikes.It
is,however,influencedbymutualneuronalinteractionsmediatedbysynapticandnonsynaptic
interactions.

Isthereanyexplanationforthesephenomena?

Besidesthoseninepossiblewaysofinteractionbetweenindividualneuronsandneuronalgroups
listedearlier,onehastohypothesizethatthereexistsomeadditional,fastertypesofinteraction.
Themostobviousmightbeelectromagneticinteractions,electricalcurrentspassingthroughthe
braintissue.Thispossibilityisnotveryacceptable.Thebrainisanorganformedbylargenumbers
ofcellmembraneswithahighimpedanceandasmallamountofextracellularfluidinbetween.
Electricalpotentialsproducedbyneuronsandalsogliamustpassthroughhighimpedancecell
membranesandhencecannotgettoofar.Forinstance,theelectricalpotentialsrecordedinan
electroencephalogramoriginateinthemostsuperficiallayersofthecerebralcortex.Potentials
fromdeeperstructurescanberecordedonlyafternumerousrepetitionsofthesweepsandtheir
averaging,asseenintherecordingofauditorybrainstempotentials.Also,whenwerecordtheunit
activityextracellularly,itisdifficulttoextractasignalfromthenoiseatadistancelargerthan100
microns.

Theremustbesomethingoccurringinthebrainthatisfasterthansynaptictransmission.Asthe
mostlikelypossibilitywemustconsidersubmicroscopicinteractionsataquantumlevel.This
problemisalsoassociatedwithhumanconsciousness.AsstatedbyStapp(2004,p.250),the
problemofconsciousnesscannotbesolvedwithoutconsideringquantummechanics.Thequestion
is,howtouseit,whatkindofdynamicsissuitableforthistask.

Therearethreeadvantagestothisquantumapproach:First,thatthetemporaryconnectionof
varioussystemsmightbesufficientlyfastsecond,thattheconnectionsmaybequicklyterminated
andthird,thatquantuminteractionsmayalsohelptoexplainsubjectiveconsciousness.

Submicroscopicparticlesmaypenetrateseeminglysolidmatter.Theymaypassatasupraluminal
speedandtheirmovementmaybesubjecttononlocalityasdescribedbyDavidBohm(1951).This
processmayalsotakeplaceinthebrain.

Functionsofaneuron
Eachneuroniscomposedofthenervecellbody,perikaryon,withtheattachedaxonwithits
branches,telodendria,andwiththedendrites.Synapsesattheendoftelodendriaconnectthem
withdendrites,perikaryaoraxonsofotherneurons.Severalsynapsesmustusuallybeactivatedto
achieveproductionofanerveimpulseintheaxonhillock.Whenanerveimpulsereachesthenerve
ending,calciumionsenterthesynapticknobandelicitthereleaseofsynapticvesiclescontaininga
neurotransmitter.Thereleasedneurotransmitteractivatesthepostsynapticmembraneandelicits
theformationofEPSPsandIPSPs.Theseelectricalwavesspreadoverthesurfacemembraneof
theneurondecrementally.Whentheyreachtheaxonhillock,theymayproduceanerveimpulse
whichmovesalongtheaxon,usingcirculatingcurrentsstimulatingtheaxontowarditsend,the
synapticknob.Eachneuronisthereforeasufficientsourceofmovingelectronswhich,asquantum
particlesfillthespace,mayinteractwithotherelectrons.Theneuronalroleasageneratorof
particleschangeseachnanosecond.Thereareatleasttenbillionneuronsinthebrain,allofthem
producingscoresofparticles.

Allelectricalphenomenaintheneuronmustbeconsidered,thosetakingplaceonthesurfaceofthe
braincells,inthecellmembrane,butalsoinside,inmicrotubulesandmitochondria,thoseinvolved
intheconformationofproteinmoleculesetc.Allofthemtogetherrepresentapowerfulsourceof
subatomicparticlescontacting,onaquantumlevel,particlesgeneratedbyotherneurons.

WecallthisconglomeratetheRHS,RealHumanSoul.Thereasonforthisnameisthatthisisthe
highestlevelcontrollingsystemofthebrain,analogoustotheimmortalhumansoul.However,the
existenceoftheimmortalhumansoulcannotbeprovenatthemoment.TheRHSactivityends
whentheneuronsendtheirfunctions.Itisnotahomunculuscontrollingbrainfunctionfromthe
outside,itisthehighestlevelsystemproducedbythebrainfunctionitself.Itisreal,notmystical.It
isnotidenticalwith.consciousmentalfield.,asLibetdescribesit,becausesomepartsofitare
probablyunconscious.

ButtheRHSdoesperformcertainfunctionswhichareattributedbyEccles,Libetandotherstothe
immortalsoul.

Libetclaimsthatinoneofhisexperimentshestimulatedthehumansupplementarymotorcortex
first,foratleast500mswhichmeansthatthisstimulationwassubjectivelyperceivedbythe
experimentalsubjectandonlythenelectricallystimulatedtheperipheralnerve.Subjective
perceptionoftheelectricshockhowevercamefirst,andtheperceptionofthecorticalstimulation
followed.Thatmeansthattheflowofsubjectiveperceptionwaschanged.Heistalkingabouttime
reversal,oreffectoftheimmortalsoul.Itisneither.

IfweaccepttheexistenceoftheRHScomplex,thenwemayhypothesizethatthiscomplexisnot
conscious,butisabletoorganizeneuronalactivityaccordingtocertainrules,rearrangethe
sequenceofperceivedevents,makeadecisionwhenbrainactivitybecomesconscioussothat
perceptionofperipheralstimulationcomesfirst,asitissupposedtocomeinnormallife,and
corticalstimulationlater,asitissupposedtobe.Theentryintoconsciousnessmaybealso
postponedoradvanced.Themotoraction,asshownintheexampleofcardrivingorsportactivity,
maycomefirst,andconscioussubjectiveperceptionlater.Libetspeaksaboutthemodulationof
consciousexperience,andwebelievethatthisisonefunctionoftheRHS.Consciousperceptionis
notpartoftheRHScomplex,consciousperceptioncomesafteralongeractionofRHS.Libet
estimatesthatittakesatleast500mstoactivateconsciousness.

Thisexplanationdoesnotpostulatetimereversal,whichisaweirdnotionwedidnotfeelvery
comfortablewith.NordoesiteliminatefreewillbutrathersituatesitintotheRHS.

Fromwhatweknow,wemayconcludethattheRHSreceivesnotonlyeventstakingplaceinthe
present,butalsoeventsintherecentpast,comparesthemandachievesthecontinuityof
perception.AnexamplecomesfromErwinHusserl(translationfrom1991),whowrotethatinthe
consciousness,the.presenttime,perceptionofpreciousmoment.,astheycallit,lastsseveral
secondsandgraduallyfadesaway.Therefore,weareabletoperceiveamelodyasawhole,a
spokensentenceaswhole.Therecentpastisstillpresentasasetof.virtual.electronsintheRHS,
comparedwiththepresentandanalyzedtogether.

Thehumanbrainisenormouslycomplex.Itisthemostcomplexstructureweknow.TheRHSis
alsoenormouslycomplex.Itisformedbyallmovingelectronstogether.Itunifiestheactionsofall
neurons.Itis,ontheotherhand,alsoabletoselectindividualneuronsandinducetheirfiring.This
firingcausesanewchangeinthesystem,selectingnewneurons,inducingtheirfunctionalchanges
andusingelectronsproducedtoitsownnewchange.Allthatissupplementedbyacontinuing
inputofallsensoryactivitieswhichalsobringsaboutitschange.Ideally,itwouldbepossibleto
assembleMarkovmappingofthegroupsofneurons.

TheRHSisabasicmechanismofbrainfunction.Itis,perhaps,anonlocalphenomenonwhereall
movingelectronsinteract.Itformsapowerful,perpetuallychangingbutmoreorlessunified
system.Itisnecessarytonotethatthebrainisawarmandlargephysicalobjectandthe
interactionsofquantumparticlesarisingfromtheelectrophysiologicalactivitiesinitareextremely
short.Thismaybeanadvantage,sincebrainactivitychangesveryquickly.Weanticipatethatsuch
anenormouscollectionofquantumeventsdoesnothaveahomogeneousstructure.Theremaybe
partitionsspecifyingcloseconnections.However,whateverhappensinanypartofthis
conglomerateisreflectedinotherpartsofit.Thischoicemayplayadecisiveroleinthefunctioning
oftheRHS.

Themovementsofelectronsarealsoelicitedbymolecularsyntheticandcatabolicactions.This
complicatesthesituationtremendously,becausetheyallproducequasiparticlesofaquantum
character,withsimilarcharacteristics.However,weassumethatthesemetabolicallycreatedand
utilizedparticlesformsomecontinuousnoisewhichdoesnotsubstantiallyinfluencetheneural
processes.

Thetargetofthequasiparticlesmaybeelectricallystimulatedionicchannels,whichthenincrease
theefficiencyofsynapses.Thesechannelsmaybeinthepostsynapticmembranesandincreasethe
amplitudesofEPSPbythepassageofsodiumandpotassiumionsthroughthemembrane.Or,they
maybeinthepresynapticmembranes,increasetheactivityofcalciumchannelsandtherefore
increaseareleaseofsynapticvesiclesandthus,theamplitudeofthepostsynapticpotentials.A
minutequantumactionmaybesufficienttotriggerthewholeprocess.Quantumprocesses
regulatingthetransportthroughthebiologicalmembraneswereobservedinphotosynthetic
bacteria(Vosetal.,1993).

RelationofthesefunctionsoftheCNStoconsciousness
Nonsynaptictransmissionisprobablyalsoconnectedwiththeappearanceofconsciousness.Itis
knownthatinthebrainareasinvolvedinincreasedattention,therateofneuronalfiringincreases
(Wurtzetal.,1980).Theamplitudeofcorticalevokedpotentialsalsoincreaseswheninfluencedby
consciousattention(DesmedtandTomberg,1995).Thisincreasedactivationisaccompaniedby
increasedbloodflowdetectablebyfunctionalneuroimagingsuchaspositronemissiontomography,
magneticresponseimaging(Rees,KreimanandKoch,2002)orevenbyasimplemeasurementof
temperatureintheactiveareaorofbloodcomingfromthatarea.

Itisdifficulttobelievethathumanconsciousnessappearedinevolutionallofsudden,withoutany
simplerprecursors.Somethingsimilarbutsimplemustexistinnature.Thebrainutilizesmany
knownphysicalandchemicalmechanisms.Italsoutilizesthemechanismsofthesubmicroscopic
quantumworld.Istheresomethingsimpleinnaturethatcouldbeusedfortheformationofhuman
consciousness?

Theremightbe.Particlescommunicatewithoneanotherandwiththeenvironment,e.g.inthe
presenceorabsenceofthesecondslitinthetwoslitexperiment.Theparticles.know.,.feel.and
accordingtosometheoreticianseven.remember..Ofcourse,thisdescriptionismetaphoric.The
particlesdonot.know.anythinginahuman,psychologicalsense.Theyarenotconsciousaswe
humansunderstandit.Theirinteractionisaphysical,notapsychologicalevent.Butthisphysical
propertymaybetheelementaryfunctiononwhichthehumanconsciousnessisbased.

Isthisthenaveryelementarykindofconsciousness,somekindofprotoconsciousness?Subatomic
particlesmayalsobeinfluencedbyhumanconsciousevents,asseen,e.g.,insomemodificationsof
thetwoslitexperiment.Thisispossiblebecausetheysharesomething,theyhavesomethingin
common.Itmaybeassumedthatthisprotoconsciousnesscouldbeasimplebuildingblockof
actualhumanconsciousness.

Ofcourse,individualhumanconsciousnessismuchmorecomplicatedthantheprotoconsciousness
connectingtwoelectrons.Humanconsciousnesscontainsandhandlesinformation.Thecontentsof
oursubjectivehumanconsciousnessaredeterminedbytheneuronalmechanismsofsensation,
perception,association,memoryetc.Thestateofconsciousnessitselfmayberelatedtotheproto
consciousnessofelementaryparticles,whichmaygiveobjectivebraineventstheirsubjectivity.

ConsciousactivitiesformonlyasmallsegmentofbrainfunctionandoftheRHS.Consciousness
probablydependsontheRHS.Itsappearanceprobablydependsonthemassofneuronsinvolved
anddurationoftheinvolvement(Libetetal.,1983).

Itisalsopossiblethatthereareareasinthebrainwhicharesuitablefortheproductionand
perceptionofconsciousexperience(Baars1995).TheRHSinvolvesallthemovementsofelectrons
inthebrain,andtherefore,theentirebrainfunction.Undercertainconditions.durationofthe
contact,powerofthecontact,anatomicalarrangement.theRHScreatesconsciousness.This
appearancemaybeonlytemporaryandvolatile.Realreasoning,mostactivitiesofthemind,are
unconsciousandtheresultsmaybecomeacomponentoftheconsciousness.

TherearethereforeseveralcharacteristicsoftheRHSwhichmaybededucedfromknowndata:

Theunificationofallbrainfunctions.
Acertaincontinuity,whenamomentarystateoftheRHSisinfluencedbytheimmediately
previousstatesofRHS.Itisthe.preciousmoment.ofWilliamJamesandEdmundHusserl.
Uncertaintyandthestatisticalnatureofbrainfunctionsderivedfromthegeneralstatistical
characterofquantummechanics.Noteverythingisevaluatedinthesameway.
Itislocalizedinthebrainbutpossibly,probably,notexclusively.Anumberofobservations
indicatethattheRHSinfluencesthefunctionsofthebody,butthatvegetativefunctions
influencetheRHSaswell.Thereisalsoanumberofreliableobservationsshowingthatthe
RHSinfluencesothersubjects(Harrisetal.,1999,Wackermannetal.,2003).Inrelationfor
quantummechanics,itmayfunctionasanexternalobserver(forcriticalreviewof.observer.
seeStapp.1999).ThequestionthereforeiswhethertheroleoftheRHSendsatthe
 boundariesofthebrain.Itmayinfluencethewholebody,formingapsychosomaticnetwork
(Dreher,2003)orevenotherbrains.

Openquestions

Thisproposalofanonsynapticquantummechanicalhypothesisofbrainfunctionelicitsanumber
ofquestionsthatstillremainopen.

Thefirstquestionis:Whatisthechemicalreactionrespondingtoaquantumevent?Itmaybethe
isomerizationofarelativelysimpleorganicmolecule,orsomeeffectonthesecondmessenger
systemwithinthesensitiveneuron,aneffectonelectricallyexcitableionicchannels,aneffectonthe
movementofsynapticvesiclestothesurfacemembraneofthenerveendings.Theseandother
possibilitiesmaybeelucidatedexperimentallybyexistingmethods.

Thesecondopenquestionis:Howisthespecificityofthenonsynapticconnectionsmaintained?It
isobviousthattheelectronsdonotcarryanycomplexinformation.Wemayassumethatthe
triggeringnonsynapticeventonlyinfluencessomesensitiveneuronsinthelocalnetwork.Thisis
alsoaproblemwhichmaybesolvedbyexistingelectrophysiologicalmethods,suchasthatofReinis
(1997).

Stapp,whocametosimilarconclusions,statedinthisrespect(2004,p.252):.Thelawsof
contemporaryquantumtheory,althoughhighlyrestrictive,arenotthewholestory:Thereisstillwork
tobedone.Hypothesesmustbeformulatedandtested..

However,sincethebrainfunction,toacertaindegree,resemblesaquantumcomputer,theremight
beanumberofquantumfunctionsutilizedinboth.Theremightbeaquantuminterference,
superposition,entanglement,nondeterminism,nonclonability,transfersofgroupsofelectrons
resemblingteleportation,transfersofotherions,cavityquantumelectrodynamics,arrangementof
electronsandotherparticlesaccordingtothePauliprinciple,qubitsthatcanexistnotonlyina
statecorrespondingtothelogicalstate0or1asinaclassicalbit,butalsoinstatescorrespondingto
ablendorsuperpositionoftheseclassicalstates(WilliamsandClearwater,2000).Aqubitcanexist
asazero,aone,orsimultaneouslyasboth0and1,withanumericalcoefficientrepresentingthe
probabilityforeachstate.Combinedwithmassivequantumparallelismachievedthrough
superposition,theneuronalsystemsmayhaveanenormouscomputingpower.Explorationof
algorithmsdescribingtheseactivitiesisamatteroffuture,andparallelstudiesofquantum
mechanismsandlivingneuronalsystemsmightbeveryfruitful.

Itseemstobeobviousthatadigitalcomputercannotperformallthefunctionsofthebrain
(Penrose1994).Thequantumcomputereventuallycan.Thequantumcomputermaybeeventually
closertothebrainfunctionthatthedigitalcomputer.

Wehavetokeepinmindthattheanalogybetweenthebrainandacomputerisverysuperficial.
Howtodetermineaqubitinthebrain?Howisitrelatedtoafunctioningneuron?Howto
determinethedifferencebetweenmemoryregistersandprocessingunitsinthebrain?

Thewarmandwetinnerenvironmentofthebraindoesnotallowanylongtimeentanglementand
superpositionoftwofunctionalunits.Howisthenthecomputationalactivityofthebrain
accomplished?

Howisthebrainprotectedagainsterrorscomingfromitsenvironment,bothwithinthebodyand
outside?Howaretheerrorscorrected?Isthereanysimilarityinthequantumerrorcorrection
proposedbyresearchersinvolvedinquantumcomputerresearchandcorrectionoferrorsinthe
brain?Howistheclassicalneuronalfunctionrelatedtothequantumcomputationevents,in
particularinviewofthefactthataquantumcomputermaybeformedjustbyasinglemolecule
(Chuangetal,1995)

Perhaps,theanswertothequestionofcomputerlikefunctionsoflocalneuronalsystemsisinthe
interactionofRHSwiththebrainstructurewhichatthesametimecreatestheRHS.Thatmeans
thattheinteractionbetweenclassicalandquantummechanismsmaygiveussomeanswersaswell.

Anotheropenquestionremains:Whatisthedifferencebetweentheconsciousandtheunconscious
processesinthebrain?StudiesbyMerikleetal.(e.g.,VisserandMerikle,1999)indicatethatthe
differencebetweenthemisnotverysharp,thetransitionsbetweenthetwoarerapid,temporary
anddependentonemotions.Itis,therefore,possiblethatthedifferencebetweentheconsciousand
theunconsciousisquantitative.Themoresynapticandnonsynapticeventsthereareinacertain
areaofthebrain,thehigherthepossibilitythattheeventitselfenterstheconsciousness.Asan
example,thevisualpathwayfromtheeyeintothelateralgeniculatebodyisunconscious,areaV1
ofthecortexmaybeconsciousundercertaincircumstances,andeventsinareasV2andhigherare
conscious.Thisprobablydependsonthenumberofactingelements.Thehumancerebralcortex
representsabout75%ofthebrainmass,andmostconsciouseventsmaytakeplacewithinit.On
theotherhand,atalowleveloffiringandneuronalinteractions,consciousnessdoesnot
substantiallyexceedthelevelofprotoconsciousness.

References
Baars,B.J.:Tutorialcommentary:surprisinglysmallsubcorticalstructuresareneededfor
thestateofwakingconsciousness,whilecorticalprojectionareasseemtoprovideperceptual
contentsofconsciousness.ConsciousCogn.4:159162(1995).
Bohm,D.,HileyH.J.,Kaloyerou,P.N.:Anontologicalbasisforthequantumtheory.Physics
Reports,154:32275(1987).
Chuang,L.,Vandersypen,L.,Kubinec,M.:Experimentalimplementationoffastquantum
searching,PhysicalReviewLetters,80:3408.3412(1998).
Deecke,L.,Grotzinger,B.,Kornhuber.H.H.:Voluntaryfingermovementinman,cerebral
potentialsandtheory.BiologicalCybernetics23:99.119(1976).
Dennett,D.C.,Kinsbourne,M.:TimeandtheObserver.BehavioralandBrainSciences,15:
183247(1992).
Desmedt,J.E.,Tomberg,C.:Consciousness.EEGClin.Neurophysiol.Suppl.44:227.234
(1995).
DreherH:Mindbodyunity.TheJohnsHopkinsUniversityPress,BaltimoreandLondon.
(2003).
Geldard,F.A.,Sherrick,C.E.:TheCutaneous'rabbit':aperceptualillusion.Science,178:
178179(1972)
HarrisW.S.,GowdaM.,KolbJ.W.,StrychaczC.P.,VacekJ.L.,JonesP.G.,ForkerA,
O'KeefeJ.H.,McCallisterB.D.:Arandomized,controlledtrialoftheeffectsofremote
intercessoryprayeronoutcomesinpatientsadmittedtothecoronarycareunit.Arch.Intern.
Med.169:2273.2278(1999).
Heisenberg,W.:PhysicsandBeyond,(NewYork:HarperandRow,1971).
Husserl.E.Onthephenomenologyoftheconsciousnessofinternaltime(18931907).Zur
PhenomenologiedesinnerenZeitwustsein.CollectedWorksvol.IVTranslatedbyJohn
BarnettBrough.PublishedbyKluwerAcademicPublishers,Dordrecht,TheNetherlands
(1991).
James,W.:ThePrinciplesofPsychology,1890.Dover(1955).
Kolers,P.A.,vonGruenau,M.(1976),ShapeandColorinApparentMotion,VisionResearch
16:32935(1976).
Klumpp,R.G.,Eady.H.R.:Somemeasurementsofinterauraltimedifferencethresholds.
JournaloftheAcousticalSocietyofAmerica,28:859860(1956).
Lashley,K.S.:TheNeuropsychologyofLashley.Selectedpapers,FrankA.RoachEd.,New
York,McGraw.Hill(1960).
Libermann,A.M.:TheGrammarofSpeechandLanguage,CognitivePsychology,1:301323
(1970).
Libet,B.:Neuronalvs.subjectivetiming,foraconscioussensoryexperience,InP.A.Buser
andA.RougeulBuser(Eds.),Cerebralcorrelatesofconsciousexperience,pp.69.82.
(Amsterdam,NewYork:NorthHolland,1978).
Libet,B.,Gleason,C.A.,Wright,E.W.,Jr.,Pearl,D.K.:Timeofconsciousintentiontoact
inrelationtoonsetofcerebralactivity(readinesspotential),Brain,106:623.42(1983).
Libet,B.,Wright,E.W.,Jr.,Feinstein,B.Pearl,D.K.:Subjectivereferralofthetimingfora
conscioussensoryexperience:Afunctionalroleforthesomatosensoryspecificprojection
systeminman.Brain,102:193.224(1979).
Libet,B.:Atestablefieldtheoryofmindbraininteraction,JournalofConsciousnessStudies,
1:119126(1994).
Libet,B.:Neuraltimefactorsinconsciousandunconsciousmentalfunction.In:Towarda
scienceofconsciousness.ThefirstTucsondiscussionsanddebates.Hameroff,S.R.,Kaszniak,
A.W.Scott,A.C.Eds,MITPress,(1996).
Libet,B.:Neuronalvs.subjectivetiming,foraconscioussensoryexperience.InP.A.Buser
andA.RougeulBuser(Eds.),Cerebralcorrelatesofconsciousexperience,pp.69.82.
Amsterdam/NewYork:NorthHolland(1978)..
Libet,B.:Theexperimentalevidenceforsubjectivereferralofasensoryexperience
backwardsintime:AreplytoP.S.Churchland.PhilosophyofScience,48:182.197(1981).
Libet,B.:Unconsciouscerebralinitiativeandtheroleofconsciouswillinvoluntaryaction,
TheBehavioralandBrainSciences,8(4),529.539withopenpeercommentary:539.558and
Libet.sreply,Theoryandevidencerelatingcerebralprocessestoconsciouswill:558.566
(1985).
Pari,D.,Llinas,R.R.:Consciousandpreconsciousprocessesasseenfromthestandpointof
sleep.wakingcycleneurophysiology.Neuropsychologia331155.1168(1995).
Penrose,R.:ShadowsoftheMind.OxfordUniversityPress(1994).
Rees,G.,Kreiman,G.,Koch,C.:Neuralcorrelatesofconsciousnessinhumans.Nature
Reviews3:261.270(2002).
Reinis,S.:Someprinciplesofdecodinglocalneuronalsystems.NeuralNetworkWorld,7:
205.225(1997).
Saillant,P.A,Simmons,J.A.,Dear,S.P.,McMullen,T.A.:Acomputationalmodelofecho
processingandacousticimaginginFMecholocatingbats:Thespectrogramcorrelationand
transformationreceiver.JournaloftheAcousticalSocietyofAmerica,94:26912712(1993)..
Schroedinger,Erwin:Whatislife?(Cambridge,Massachusetts:CambridgeattheUniversity
Press,1967).
Stapp,H.R.:Attention,intention,andwillinquantumphysics.In:Thevolitionalbrain,B,
Libet,A.FreemanandK.SutherlandEds.,ImprintAcademic,pp.143164,1999.
Stapp.H.R.:Mind,MatterandQuantumMechanics.SpringerVerlag,NewYork(2004).
VanderWaals,H.G.,Roelofs,C.O.OptischeZeitbewegung.Z.f.PsychologieundPhysiologie
desSinnesorgane114:241.288(1931).
Visser,T.A.W.,MerikleP.M.:Consciousandunconsciousprocesses:Theeffectof
motivation.ConsciousnessandCognition,8:94.113(1999).
Vos,M.H.,Rappaport,F.,Lambry,J.C.,Breton,J.,Matrin,J.L.:Visualizationofcoherent
nuclearmotioninamembraneproteinbyfemtosecondspectroscopy.Nature363:320.325
(1990)
Wackermann,J.,Seiter,C.,Keibel,H.,Walach,H.:Correlationsbetweenbrainelectrical
activitiesoftwospatiallyseparatedhumaqnsubjects.NeuroscienceLetters,336:60.64
(2003).
Williams,C.P.,Clearwater,S.H.:Ultimatezeroandone.Copernicus,SpringerVerlag,Inc,,
NewYork(2000).
Wurtz,R.H.,Goldberg,M.E.,Robinson,D.L.:Behavioralmodulationofvisualresponsesin
themonkey:stimulusselectionforattentionandmovement.Prog.Psychobiol.Physiol.
Psychol.9:43.83(1995).

returntothepreviousmenu