'Orch OR' is the most complete, and most easily falsifiable theory of consciousness.
Cognitive Neuroscience 2021 DOI: 10.1080/17588928.2020.1839037 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Consciousness Orch or Anesthesia Microtubule Orchestrated objective reduction Pyramidal neuron Quantum computing Tubulin |
| Key points | Proposes that consciousness arises from quantum computations in microtubules via orchestrated objective reduction. |
Abstract
The 'Orch OR' theory attributes consciousness to quantum computations in microtubules inside brain neurons. Quantum computers process information as superpositions of multiple possibilities (quantum bits or qubits) which, in Orch OR, are alternative collective dipole oscillations orchestrated ('Orch') by microtubules. These orchestrated oscillations entangle, compute, and terminate ('collapse of the wavefunction') by Penrose objective reduction ('OR'), resulting in sequences of Orch OR moments with orchestrated conscious experience (metaphorically more like music than computation). Each Orch OR event selects microtubule states which govern neuronal functions. Orch OR has broad explanatory power, and is easily falsifiable.
Citations in the library
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- A quantum microtubule substrate of consciousness is experimentally supported and solves the binding and epiphenomenalism problems. Neuroscience of Consciousness 2025
- Neural Circuits, Microtubule Processing, Brain's Electromagnetic Field-Components of Self-Awareness. Brain Sciences July 25, 2021
- Evolutionary Origin and the Development of Consciousness. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews December 1, 2021
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