Press Release from the Guerilla Science Desk!

New hypothesis concerning consciousness: consciousness as a state of visible light (or visible light as a state of consciousness). Whatever, they are the same fucking thing.

by Lara Samuels

Introduction: 

First of all, I don't think I'm a total nut job. I am a skeptic and an agnostic. I do not embrace pseudoscience of any kind. However, I have developed what I think is a plausible hypothesis concerning consciousness that I have not seen anywhere else in my extensive (not) research of the subject and, quite frankly, it is impossible to talk about consciousness, or even physics for that matter, without sounding like a whackjob.

So, screw it, here it goes.

Here are some things I know just from taking basic science classes over the years and most of them will be relevant when I propose my hypothesis concerning consciousness. None of these things is in anyway radical or controversial and I'm going to cover them as briefly and concisely as possible:

1. Visible light has no mass, sometimes behaves like a wave, and sometimes like a particle. It is a component of the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS), specifically those wavelengths from about 400 nm to about 700 nm. The rest of the EMS is not visible, since our eyes have not evolved to “see” it, but it is detectable none the less.

2. Visible light energy, like all energy,  is neither created nor destroyed, but it can change to another form. For example, solar energy can be converted to electrical energy and then to the mechanical energy in your blender. However, during conversion to other states, some of this energy is "lost"  as heat (thermal energy). This heat dissipates through atoms and molecules and many propose the notion of "heat death": that all the usable energy in the universe will eventually become heat. It's as though usable energy is "concentrated" but will eventually diffuse evenly through the universe. Kind of like a gas...

3. Photosynthesis is a cellular process that algae, plants and photosynthetic bacteria perform, taking the energy from visible light (not, incidentally, the remaining forms of EMS) and transferring it to chemical bond energy. This chemical energy exists in all of the bonds in all of the molecules in our bodies. So, yes, you have sunlight in your tissues; no wonder you are glowing! Without photosynthesis, visible light would just bounce off the planet and return to the universe unchanged. In other words, it is photosynthetic organisms that trap this energy in chemical bonds. You should thank them every day. 

 4. Combustion occurs when hydrocarbons reacts with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and water. If this process is fast and involved a high concentration of carbon based matter, heat and light are released. If this process is slow (as in decomposition) then the energy is released as heat, but there is no visible light released that can be detected by the human eye. Combustion is in essence the opposite of photosynthesis, since in photosynthesis, carbon dioxide and water produce hydrocarbons and oxygen. In combustion, oxygen is “fixed” into carbon dioxide (I put it in quotes because I've never heard a chemistry teacher refer to oxidation as "fixing", and it may not be the right word since CO2 is a gas, not a solid). In photosynthesis, carbon dioxide is fixed into hydrocarbons (now that's definitely correct!) 

Hypothesis Concerning Consciousness 

Okay this is it: I contend that consciousness is visible light energy stored in chemical bonds. 

In this view, consciousness is perhaps analogous to a “state” of light (or maybe EMS is a “state” of consciousness?), much like gases, liquids and solids are states of matter. I'm going to say that light is analogous to the gaseous state of consciousness and that consciousness is the solid state. I'm not sure about heat but I think it's involved. Maybe analogous to a liquid state? I have to get high again and figure that one out. 

The mechanism by which "gaseous" light is fixed into its solid state (consciousness) is photosynthesis. Note that in this view consciousness is a state of visible light only, since these are the wavelengths of light utilized by photosynthetic organisms. It is unclear whether other forms of EMS are also consciousness, or perhaps represent different stages of development along what might be analogous to a “birth/death” cycle, where shorter wavelengths are a type of pre-consciousness and longer wavelengths are the product of consciousness deteriorating. 

When chemical bonds are broken and energy is released in the form of heat during normal physiological processes,  a body experiences consciousness. The rest of the "stored" consciousness will be released when the body decomposes, but since bonds are no longer being broken at a high enough rate, the subjective sensation of consciousness is no longer felt. When a body is burned, the release of consciousness is so dramatic that the light is visible to the human eye in the form of fire. So, yes, fire is consciousness too. 

Implications:

There are several implications here, besides the implication that I have gone over the deep end and perhaps need psychiatric help. 

First, the implication is that consciousness permeates all living matter,  and even non-living matter that was once alive. The degree of consciousness may depend on cellular activity. For example, the brain breaks the most bonds of all and therefore may be the most conscious, but in this model, my arm is also "conscious", so is my cat, my house plant, the spider crawling across my desk and even my wooden desk. But if the subjective sensation of consciousness is only experienced when these bonds are broken, then inanimate objects or living things that utilize less energy may be less conscious.

Metaphysically, my proposal means practically nothing except that the consciousness I am experiencing is perhaps more eternal than my physical body. However,  it does not necessarily follow that consciousness itself  is eternal.

Additionally, the model does not imply "life after death" for the individual person, only the consciousness that permeates that person. Once released back into the "sea" of photons, the consciousness is no longer a cohesive whole as it was in the body. The process I have described is analogous to decomposition: when my body decomposes the atoms will not reform into "me" again, but they will find their way separately to other organisms. Same with the photons. Once they've been converted back into light they may wind up in other conscious beings, but they will not reform my being. Further, the things that constitute a person, that is,  the memories, personality, psychology, etc. of a person certainly die when the body dies and that person ceases to exist. 

Finally, it does not follow that consciousness/visible light is “god” or has any role in the creation of life (though it could).  This hypothesis is compatible with established scientific theories concerning evolution. 

Conclusion

It is important to note that this hypothesis is just that, a hypothesis. It is also a testable hypothesis. I'm not smart enough to come up with an experiment but some things come to mind. For example, we are now capable of artificial photosynthesis and I'm wondering if this could somehow be linked to AI. There may be mathematical approaches to the problem. There also may be some detectable differences between organisms that utilize chemosynthesis along the ocean floor and those of us that are entirely dependent on photosynthesis. 

Why am I even bothering to think about this crazy stuff in the first place? The real reason? The same reason people cling to religion: because people they love die and they can't handle it. I fully confess that it is only after my friend Gig's death that I struggled to find something plausible but somehow comforting to explain his absence. 

 I am comforted by the idea that the elements of my friend Gig's consciousness are still floating around out there, albeit in separate quanta that will never reform into him. I also am comforted by the fact  that what I can feel permeating my body is actually light and that the animals, plants and fungi I know and love are also permeated with consciousness though their subjective experiences may be different than mine. It gives me a satisfying kinship with the universe. 

So, yes, I stumbled upon this idea during an philosophical and perhaps even religious quest, but the principles involved are firmly rooted in science and are therefore testable by minds far greater than my own.