No mystery has resisted science more tenaciously than human consciousness. How can a cluster of cells, however complex, generate the subjective experience of being someone? The so-called “hard problem” has baffled the best minds for centuries. But maybe we were asking the wrong question.
What if consciousness was not produced by matter, but matter and consciousness both emerged from something more fundamental? Quantum information physics proposes exactly this: abstract quantum bits devoid of intrinsic meaning. (AQI) would form the basis of physical reality and our conscious experience. A paradigm shift that could finally explain how the objective universe and subjective experience are two sides of the same coin.
Beyond the Mind-Matter Dualism
The problem of human consciousness has tormented philosophers and scientists for centuries. How can sensations, emotions, and thoughts emerge from physical processes in the brain? The Cartesian division between mind and matter has created a seemingly insurmountable gulf.
On one hand we have the materialist position which sees human consciousness as a simple product of neural activity. On the other hand, various forms of dualism who consider the mind as something fundamentally different from physical matter. Both visions seem incomplete.
And this is where the quantum information theory. To this, the German physicist Thomas Gornitz has proposed a fascinating alternative: protyposis. This concept suggests that quantum information is the fundamental basis of both matter and consciousness. This is not information in the usual sense of the term, but primitive quantum structures called AQI (absolute and abstract quantum information bits).
The fundamental structure of reality
The theory of protyposis overturns the traditional view of physics. Rather than seeing the smallest particles as the simplest entities, Görnitz argues that the simplest structures are even the most spatially extensive ones.
These AQIs represent the most basic units possible from a mathematical and physical point of view. They are “open to meaning” but initially devoid of specific meaning. Only when they interact with living beings do they acquire meaning.
The theory is based on a sensational idea: matter is not the primary substance of the universe. Einstein's famous equation, E=mc², shows that energy and matter are interchangeable. But what are they, ultimately? Görnitz's answer is surprising: they are manifestations of quantum information.
Elementary particles, atoms, molecules and finally living organisms would all be structures formed by these primordial AQIs. And even our consciousness would be a quantum information structure, capable of reflecting on itself.
Human consciousness as an informational structure
According to this view, consciousness is not simply produced by the brain: it is a quantum information structure that interacts with the brain to form what Görnitz calls “uniware” (a fusion of the concepts of hardware and software).
This theory offers an elegant solution to the difficult problem of consciousness. If matter and consciousness are both manifestations of quantum information, there is no longer any need to explain how one can generate the other. They are simply “children,” or rather different aspects, of the same fundamental reality.
It is interesting to note how this vision is in some ways similar to integrated information theory di Giulio Tononi, which sees consciousness as a property of systems that integrate information in a complex way. But the protyposis goes further, providing a physical basis for understanding the very nature of information.
Entangled Photons and Brain Activity
How does this all work in the human brain? According to Görnitz, chemical reactions inside nerve cells are associated with the emission and absorption of photons.
These photons are not independent but entangled, that is, quantum-related. Their properties are therefore also correlated, forming complex informational structures that we perceive as thoughts and mental images.
These informational structures exist longer than individual photons, which are continuously emitted and absorbed. This would explain why our conscious experience is continuous despite the constant turnover of the underlying physical processes.
The physicist and inventor Federico Faggin has proposed similar ideas, suggesting that consciousness is a quantum phenomenon that exists in a reality larger than that accessible to measuring instruments.
Human Consciousness, an Ever-Broadening Scientific Paradigm
The theory of protyposis, published in BioSystems, is a change of pace that could prove to be fundamental. It is not a dualistic theory, but not even materialist in the traditional sense. We could define it as an “informational monism”: everything that exists is quantum information, which manifests itself in different forms.
This approach could help us understand not only human consciousness but also the emergence of life and the evolution of the universe itself. Protyposis provides a unified framework that connects the cosmology at the emergence of consciousness.
Of course, this theory is still under development and evaluation. Like any “breakthrough” proposal, it requires rigorous testing. Some critics argue that the theory is too abstract or that it introduces concepts that cannot be experimentally verified.
But its ability to integrate the results of quantum physics with the problem of consciousness into a coherent framework makes it particularly interesting. Perhaps the deepest mystery of our existence (the nature of human consciousness) could be explained scientifically not by reducing mind to matter, but by recognizing that both emerge from a quantum informational foundation.
Görnitz's theory invites us to deeply rethink what it means to be conscious in a universe made of quantum fields and information. We may not be simple biological machines, but we are not immaterial souls trapped in physical bodies either. We are complex manifestations of quantum information, capable of reflecting upon ourselves and creating meaning in a universe of possibilities.
