General Discussions > Skepticism / Science Talk

Orchestrated Objective Reduction (Quantum Mechanics, again)

(1/3) > >>

swpalmer:
Stumbled upon this entry in the Wikipedia today:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orch-OR

Seems to be lacking any true skeptical ananlysis...  I've heard Steve mention on the podcast that there is no evidence that there are quantum effects responsible for brain activity.  Yet on that page there are numerous responses to some of the obvious questions, ultimately the published conclusion is:

--- Quote ---Conclusion

Orch OR can account for many enigmatic features of consciousness including timing, binding, pre-conscious to conscious transition and the hard problem of conscious experience. Orch OR is consistent with all known neurophysiology, but depends on proposed physics and biology-for instance, the majority of working physicists in the field reject the idea of the quantum nature of consciousness. Orch OR has withstood numerous attempts at refutation, and is testable and falsifiable.
--- End quote ---


If there are mistakes in the information/logic being used then maybe someone can have a crack at editing that Wikipedia page?  I'm not qualified.

Gilnei:
You are not alone in your opinion.

gost:
Hot stuff, sw. Very cool topic.

Joe Shmoe:
Many of the entries for truly fringe concepts at wikipedia are completely lacking in skepticism.  In fact some of the articles that I've seen which  do have a healthy dose of skepticism are earmarked as 'biased'.

gost:
Here's a link to the real deal: (WARNING: HEAVY SCIENCE CONTENT AHEAD)

Orchestrated Objective Reduction of Quantum Coherence in Brain Microtubules: The "Orch OR" Model for Consciousness by Stuart Hameroff and Roger Penrose

I pretty sure it's written in english, but I know Dr. Steven Novella, MD will just rip right through it, like a hot knife through partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, in any event. I just don't know why I'm so attracted to this microtubule idea and the implications for AI using nanotubes. Maybe I'm a victim of argument from credulity. This has GOT to be the way that Data works.

PS- Be sure to check out the rest of this site, called Quantum Consciousness, which is maintained by Stuart Hameroff.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page