The QBIT Theory: Consciousness from Entangled Qubits.
Integrative psychological & behavioral science December 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1007/s12124-022-09745-w (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractThe QBIT theory proposes that consciousness arises when the brain becomes more than certain about the cause of a sensory representation. This occurs when the conditional entropy of a prior belief given the sensory representation drops below zero, a condition that requires the brain to use entangled quantum information. At its most fundamental level, consciousness is described as a special kind of entangled information.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Brain Conditional entropy Consciousness Entanglement Qubit |
| Key finding | Proposes that consciousness emerges when the brain's prior belief about a stimulus reaches a state of more than certainty through negative conditional entropy, which requires entangled quantum information. |
Abstract
How does the brain generate consciousness? The present paper is an attempt to answer this question from the perspective of the QBIT theory. In sum, the theory argues that the brain has a prior belief (P) about the stimulus that has caused a sensory representation (R) to be created in the brain. When the conditional entropy of P given R becomes less than zero, the brain becomes more than certain about (i.e. becomes conscious of) the stimulus. Conditional entropy can become negative (and thus the brain can become more than certain) only if the brain uses entangled quantum information in its computations. The QBIT theory suggests that, at the most fundamental level, consciousness is nothing but a special kind of entangled information.