As a Psychologicalist, I like to explore the science and philosophy of the human condition and push the limits of what we think we know. I pursue these things, not to be right (in fact I will be called heretical by both the scientific and religious communities for what I am about to propose), but to get people to think beyond their self-established intellectual boundaries and consider what might be possible. It is here, at the edges of possibility, that creativity is born.
Quantum entanglement is, in a technical phrase, weird science. It’s a part of quantum physics first conceived by Einstein, and even he thought it was weird. Einstein referred to quantum entanglement as “spooky action at a distance.”
Without getting too technical, quantum entanglement says that items formed at the same time and then subsequently separated (by 2 feet or 2 million light years) continue to share some attributes.
What this means in practical terms is that when you split an object (like a diamond) and separate the halves, what you do to one (like an electronic pulse) can be measured as if it occurred in the other - instantaneously - regardless of its distance. So certain characteristics are therefore “entangled.”
I suspect that the reason this concept irritated Einstein was because it violated the theory of relativity, which (among many other things) states that NOTHING can travel faster than the speed of light (186,000 miles per second).
Objects that are “entangled” however, respond simultaneously to their separated counterpart, with no regard to distance, violating the very premise of light’s speed limit and implying that despite the apparent physical separation, they remain “connected.”
Scientists have no idea HOW this works, only that it does. It has been proven in experiments over and over since the 1980s. It has been proven with gasses and metals (some of the elemental building blocks of life). But most recently, quantum entanglement was established with diamonds. Diamonds, unlike elemental gasses and metals, are complex carbon molecular structures that in some ways are similar to what we are composed of (also complex carbon based molecular structures).
Based on these established scientific facts, I can’t help but ask - could this “connectedness” that we see in science also apply in some way to the human connections that we so often attribute to coincidence and spirituality?
Following the basic laws of quantum entanglement as we know them (and assuming for a moment that quantum entanglement also works in the context of the complex molecular structures that we are composed of), the first requirement for the concept to be valid would be that we (all humans) were split from something formed at the same time.
Human mitochondrial DNA research has relatively recently been able to establish and trace all human lineage back to a single female who originated in the heart of Saharan Africa. Every single human on earth shares a common mitochondrial DNA strand with this one woman referred to as Mitochondrial Eve.
This simple and indisputable fact means that we all share a common complex molecular structure that was very literally created at one time.
Knowing that there is a factual biological connection, let us consider some difficult-to-explain human connections that might be considered evidence for human quantum entanglement.
Simultaneous discoveries are a fascinating potential piece of evidence. People who have never met, never communicated, who were completely isolated from each other, or any evidence of the others work have simultaneously made the same discoveries.
In 1817 Cadmium (Strohmeyer & Hermann)
In 1828 Beryllium (Wohler & Bussy)
In 1831 Electromagnetic Induction (Faraday & Henry)
In 1837 The Telegraph (Wheatstone & Morse)
In 1847 Neptune (Verrier & Adams)
In 1858 The Mobius Strip (Mobius & Listing)
In 1868 Helium (Jansen & Lockyer)
In 1869 Periodic Table of Elements (Mendeleev & Meyer)
In 1876 Sperm and Egg fertilization (Hertwig & Fol)
In 1876 The Telephone (Gray & Bell)
In 1877 The Phonograph (Edison & Cros)
In 1896 Prime number theorem proofs (Hadamard & Vallee-Poussin)
In 1902 The hereditary nature of chromosomes (Sutton & Boveri)
In 1904 Epinephrine (Stolz & Dakin)
In 1939 The Jet Engine (Ohain & Whittle)
In 1973 Asymptotic freedom (strong nuclear bonds) (Gross/Wilczek & Politzer)
In 1993 Single wall carbon nanotubes (Bethune & Iijima)
In 2006 The accelerating expansion of the universe (Perimutter/Riess & Schmidt)
It is not shocking, in and of itself, that different people in different parts of the world came to discover the same things. It is more than a little unusual, however, that the same discoveries were made at the same time. Were they somehow connected?
An even more compelling example of the physical evidence of human connectedness came from a 1993 controlled experiment led by world-renowned quantum physicist John Hagelin. He assembled 4000 Transcendental Meditation (TM) practitioners from 81 countries into dormitories and hotels throughout the DC area where they simultaneously meditated over an 8 week period. He predicted that the meditation would reduce the violent crime rate in the DC area by 20% over that 8 week period.
The results were astonishing. Violent crime decreased by 23%. Coincidence? Rigorous analysis by a 27-member project review board composed of independent scientists didn’t think so. After factoring out weather and other possible confounding effects, statistical analysis showed that the odds of the results occurring by chance were less than 2 in 1 billion. Were they somehow connected?
Hagelin attributed the results to quantum field theory which views human consciousness as being similar to an electromagnetic field that affects those who are within it, explaining in part the physics of connected consciousness.
My point in these explorations of possibility is not to deny the existence of God, but actually the opposite. It is to begin to question the age-old concept that the world of science and the world of faith are separate and distinct. Doesn’t it make sense that the God who created the physical universe and all the laws that govern it, also created spirituality and consciousness with similar laws that govern them?
The fact that up until now we lacked the technology to perceive and test the physical connection of consciousness, doesn’t make it any less valid than quantum entanglement, quantum field theory, or radio waves, all of which we were unaware of in the past.
It is ultimately my hope that proof of the connectedness of the human spirit will lead us to recognize that hurting others literally hurts ourselves. It is my hope that maybe, through a greater understanding of the connected relationship between science and spirituality, we can find a path to peace and compassion for our fellow humans - who are us.
Quantum entanglement is, in a technical phrase, weird science. It’s a part of quantum physics first conceived by Einstein, and even he thought it was weird. Einstein referred to quantum entanglement as “spooky action at a distance.”
Without getting too technical, quantum entanglement says that items formed at the same time and then subsequently separated (by 2 feet or 2 million light years) continue to share some attributes.
What this means in practical terms is that when you split an object (like a diamond) and separate the halves, what you do to one (like an electronic pulse) can be measured as if it occurred in the other - instantaneously - regardless of its distance. So certain characteristics are therefore “entangled.”
I suspect that the reason this concept irritated Einstein was because it violated the theory of relativity, which (among many other things) states that NOTHING can travel faster than the speed of light (186,000 miles per second).
Objects that are “entangled” however, respond simultaneously to their separated counterpart, with no regard to distance, violating the very premise of light’s speed limit and implying that despite the apparent physical separation, they remain “connected.”
Scientists have no idea HOW this works, only that it does. It has been proven in experiments over and over since the 1980s. It has been proven with gasses and metals (some of the elemental building blocks of life). But most recently, quantum entanglement was established with diamonds. Diamonds, unlike elemental gasses and metals, are complex carbon molecular structures that in some ways are similar to what we are composed of (also complex carbon based molecular structures).
Based on these established scientific facts, I can’t help but ask - could this “connectedness” that we see in science also apply in some way to the human connections that we so often attribute to coincidence and spirituality?
Following the basic laws of quantum entanglement as we know them (and assuming for a moment that quantum entanglement also works in the context of the complex molecular structures that we are composed of), the first requirement for the concept to be valid would be that we (all humans) were split from something formed at the same time.
Human mitochondrial DNA research has relatively recently been able to establish and trace all human lineage back to a single female who originated in the heart of Saharan Africa. Every single human on earth shares a common mitochondrial DNA strand with this one woman referred to as Mitochondrial Eve.
This simple and indisputable fact means that we all share a common complex molecular structure that was very literally created at one time.
Knowing that there is a factual biological connection, let us consider some difficult-to-explain human connections that might be considered evidence for human quantum entanglement.
Simultaneous discoveries are a fascinating potential piece of evidence. People who have never met, never communicated, who were completely isolated from each other, or any evidence of the others work have simultaneously made the same discoveries.
In 1817 Cadmium (Strohmeyer & Hermann)
In 1828 Beryllium (Wohler & Bussy)
In 1831 Electromagnetic Induction (Faraday & Henry)
In 1837 The Telegraph (Wheatstone & Morse)
In 1847 Neptune (Verrier & Adams)
In 1858 The Mobius Strip (Mobius & Listing)
In 1868 Helium (Jansen & Lockyer)
In 1869 Periodic Table of Elements (Mendeleev & Meyer)
In 1876 Sperm and Egg fertilization (Hertwig & Fol)
In 1876 The Telephone (Gray & Bell)
In 1877 The Phonograph (Edison & Cros)
In 1896 Prime number theorem proofs (Hadamard & Vallee-Poussin)
In 1902 The hereditary nature of chromosomes (Sutton & Boveri)
In 1904 Epinephrine (Stolz & Dakin)
In 1939 The Jet Engine (Ohain & Whittle)
In 1973 Asymptotic freedom (strong nuclear bonds) (Gross/Wilczek & Politzer)
In 1993 Single wall carbon nanotubes (Bethune & Iijima)
In 2006 The accelerating expansion of the universe (Perimutter/Riess & Schmidt)
It is not shocking, in and of itself, that different people in different parts of the world came to discover the same things. It is more than a little unusual, however, that the same discoveries were made at the same time. Were they somehow connected?
An even more compelling example of the physical evidence of human connectedness came from a 1993 controlled experiment led by world-renowned quantum physicist John Hagelin. He assembled 4000 Transcendental Meditation (TM) practitioners from 81 countries into dormitories and hotels throughout the DC area where they simultaneously meditated over an 8 week period. He predicted that the meditation would reduce the violent crime rate in the DC area by 20% over that 8 week period.
The results were astonishing. Violent crime decreased by 23%. Coincidence? Rigorous analysis by a 27-member project review board composed of independent scientists didn’t think so. After factoring out weather and other possible confounding effects, statistical analysis showed that the odds of the results occurring by chance were less than 2 in 1 billion. Were they somehow connected?
Hagelin attributed the results to quantum field theory which views human consciousness as being similar to an electromagnetic field that affects those who are within it, explaining in part the physics of connected consciousness.
My point in these explorations of possibility is not to deny the existence of God, but actually the opposite. It is to begin to question the age-old concept that the world of science and the world of faith are separate and distinct. Doesn’t it make sense that the God who created the physical universe and all the laws that govern it, also created spirituality and consciousness with similar laws that govern them?
The fact that up until now we lacked the technology to perceive and test the physical connection of consciousness, doesn’t make it any less valid than quantum entanglement, quantum field theory, or radio waves, all of which we were unaware of in the past.
It is ultimately my hope that proof of the connectedness of the human spirit will lead us to recognize that hurting others literally hurts ourselves. It is my hope that maybe, through a greater understanding of the connected relationship between science and spirituality, we can find a path to peace and compassion for our fellow humans - who are us.