Perhaps one of the most intriguing and interesting phenomena in quantum physics was what Einstein called "spooky action at a distance," also known as quantum entanglement. This quantum effect is at the heart of how quantum computers work, as quantum bits (qubits) rely on entanglement to process data and information. Also, this phenomenon underlies the theory of possible quantum teleportation.
In short: entangled particles affect each other regardless of distance, since measuring the state of one instantly affects the state of the other. However, the process remains "creepy" because - despite obeying the strict laws of quantum physics - entanglement appears to be tied to a deeper, but not yet discovered, theory. Some physicists are trying to dig into this deep theory, but have not yet found anything definite.
In terms of entanglement itself, in 1964, physicist John Bell devised a famous test to determine whether particles actually affect each other. Bell's experiment involved a pair of entangled particles: one was sent to point A and the other to point B. At each of these points, the device measured the state of the particles. The measuring devices were adjusted randomly, so at the time of measurement at point A they could not know the settings of point B (and vice versa). Bell's experiment supported the eerie theory.
And so, Lucien Hardy, a theoretical physicist at the Perimeter Institute in Canada, suggests that measurements A and B can be controlled by something that is potentially separate from the material world: human consciousness. His idea stems from what the French philosopher and mathematician Rene Descartes called the dualism of mind and matter, "in which the mind is outside of ordinary physics and interferes with the physical world," as explained by Hardy.
To test his idea, Hardy proposed conducting Bell's experiment with 100 people, each of whom is connected to an EEG headset that reads brain activity. These devices will be used to switch between meter settings for A and B, set at a distance of 100 km from each other. “The key possibility we want to explore is that when humans (rather than different types of random number generators) are used to determine the settings, we can expect quantum theory to break according to Bell's inequality,” Hardy writes in his paper.
If the correlation between measurements does not match Bell's previous tests, then there will be a violation of quantum theory, which assumes that A and B are controlled by factors outside the realm of standard physics. “If we see a violation of quantum theory in a system that can be considered intelligent, human or animal, it will be incredible. I cannot imagine a more exciting outcome of an experiment in physics. The conclusions will be far-reaching."
What does it mean? That the human mind (consciousness) does not consist of the same substance that obeys the laws of physics. That is, consciousness can transcend the laws of physics due to free will. Such a result will allow physicists for the first time to closely approach the problem of consciousness. “It will not resolve the issue, but it will provide strong support for the issue of free will,” says Hardy.
ILYA KHEL
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