Qualia from quantum magic: A quantum resource approach to phenomenal consciousness

Abstract

Qualia—the first-person qualities of subjective experiences that constitute the “what it is like”of phenomenal consciousness—have thus far resisted physical explanation. Here we hypothesizethat qualia are generated in the brain during the quantum computational resolution of difficultinverse problems when non-Clifford magic states are consumed above a threshold rate. Magicstates are a well-known quantum resource necessary for universal quantum computation—a formof computational fuel. Inverse problems in cognition, such as reconstructing the state of theenvironment or internal states from incomplete or noisy sensory and interoceptive data, are typicallyill-posed and computationally costly. A prototypical inverse problem is determining the actual 3Dshape of an object from a blurry 2D retinal image. The Qualia-from-Quantum-Magic Hypothesisreframes classic philosophical thought experiments (e.g., zombies and inverted qualia), predictswhen and where qualia should arise, and offers a natural explanation for their absence in simplesystems such as thermostats and in many complex systems such as the Internet. In the brain, itpredicts consciousness-related activity to be concentrated in the posterior sensory cortices, becausevision and hearing pose some of the most challenging inverse problems that are vital to an animal’ssurvival. In light of this prediction, we conclude by discussing recent empirical findings of theCogitate Consortium.