Quantum Theories

Copenhagen Interpretation (CI)

Niles Bohrs ontology of quantum physics

This is the original interpretation, championed by Niels Bohr of Copenhagen university. He browbeat all dissenters into submission (with the notable exception of Einstein) at a Brussels conference sponsored by a man called Solvay in 1927. Bohr thereby stifled the debate for a generation or two.

The CI is a bit of loose interpretation, because essentially it states "thou shalt not ask what happens before ye look". Bohr pointed out that the Schroedinger equation worked as a tool for calculating where the particle would be, except that it 'collapsed' as soon as you looked. When you do try to take Copenhagen seriously you come to the conclusion that consciousness and particle physics are inter-related

More recently, Henry Stapp at the University of California has written papers such as On Quantum Theories of the Mind (1997). Stapp's central thesis is that the synapses in your brain are so small that quantum effects are significant. This means that there is quantum uncertainty about whether a neuron will fire or not - and this degree of freedom that nature has allows for the