What is it about?
Understanding consciousness remains one of neuroscience’s greatest challenges. While classical neurophysiology explains many features of brain activity, it cannot fully account for the unified, global coherence of conscious experience. Here we propose a quantum synchronization model of consciousness, in which neuronal microtubule networks form entangled ensembles that achieve global phase coherence through a quantum-extended Kuramoto mechanism. We derive a theoretical framework by coupling the traditional Kuramoto oscillator formalism with a quantum master equation to capture decoherence and re-entanglement dynamics. Conceptual simulations using a toy model of qubit networks demonstrate that, above a critical coupling threshold, rapid onset of global coherence occurs, paralleling gamma-band synchrony observed in neural recordings. We discuss empirical tests—including high-density EEG/MEG measures and emerging quantum biosensing techniques—and outline design criteria for engineering artificial synthetic minds capable of sustaining entangled states. This Hypothesis and Theory article offers clear, testable predictions and paves the way for novel interdisciplinary research at the intersection of computational neuroscience and quantum biology.
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Why is it important?
My manuscript, “From Classical Neurophysiology to Quantum Synchronization: A New Path to Understanding Consciousness and Creating a True Artificial Synthetic Mind,” presents a computational framework that integrates classical models of neuronal synchronization with quantum information theory. We extend the Kuramoto oscillator paradigm by introducing quantum coherence dynamics into coupled microtubule networks, deriving analytical expressions for synchronization order parameters and coherence times that can be empirically tested using high-density EEG/MEG and emerging quantum biosensing techniques. This Hypothesis and Theory article aligns with the Computational Neuroscience specialty’s emphasis on rigorous, model-driven investigations of neural dynamics and network function. By offering clear, testable predictions and by outlining practical experimental protocols and engineering guidelines for artificial synthetic minds, our work engages computational neuroscientists, neurophysiologists, and interdisciplinary researchers in quantum biology. This focus on quantitative modeling of brain coherence at the intersection of classical and quantum regimes ensures rapid and constructive peer review within the journal’s scope.
Perspectives
This article challenges the traditional, classical neurophysiological paradigm of consciousness—one rooted in linear signal transmission and local neuronal interactions—and proposes a radically different perspective centered on quantum synchronization. While classical models and neural networks capture certain aspects of brain function, they fail to account for the instantaneous, holistic nature of subjective experience. Recent research suggests that quantum effects, potentially occurring in neuronal substructures such as microtubules, could promote a global coherence akin to quantum entanglement. This coherence may enable consciousness to arise as an integrated state, rather than as a cumulative result of incremental, localized processes. The article explores how anesthesia can serve as an experimental probe, potentially “breaking” quantum coherence and thus revealing the fundamental role it may play in consciousness. From this viewpoint, designing artificial systems with genuine awareness would require embracing quantum principles, moving beyond conventional machine learning and deep neural networks toward architectures capable of generating truly holistic states. The philosophical and fundamental implications of such a quantum model of consciousness extend our understanding of cognition, challenge anthropocentric notions of the mind, and offer a new theoretical framework for the future of artificial intelligence.
Serhii Kharchuk
Zhytomyr Polytechnic State University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: From Classical Neurophysiology to Quantum Synchronization: A New Path to Understanding Consciousness and Creating a True Artificial Synthetic Mind, SSRN Electronic Journal, January 2025, Elsevier,
DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.5266364.
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