Two Types of Negation in Self-Referential Systems:A Unified Diagnosis of Quantum Measurementand Artificial Consciousness
OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) June 13, 2026 Yunjing Chen
The quantum measurement problem and the debate about AI consciousness share a structural root: both involve an observer applying a self-referential predicate to a system that lacks self-reference. The authors introduce a continuous measure, self-referential information density η_I, to distinguish two conflated operations: Negation (external rupture of identity) and Aufhebung (immanent supersession through bidirectional causal closure). They reclassify major quantum interpretations as strategies for handling Negation, diagnose the question of AI consciousness as a category error replaced by three testable criteria, and derive three falsifiable predictions. The argument itself instantiates the sequence it describes.