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The Soul vs Electromagnetic Energy

What is consciousness?


  • Total voters
    17

Exaltist Ethan

Bridging the Gap Between Believers and Skeptics
Very interesting article here explains a lot about consciousness.

Is "the soul" just electromagnetic energy our brains create while we're alive? Or are they entirely different concepts? Is it matter and soul or matter and energy? Is consciousness just a wave of electromagnetism the mind develops throughout our lives?

I side with science. I completely agree with the article and do believe that consciousness is a weak magnetic field we observe while we're alive. And when the brain doesn't have the ability to produce that electromagnetism, I'll die.

However, I like to think that it is somehow possible there could be an afterlife. The only way I could see the afterlife existing from this data is if we somehow kicked the brain to overdrive using outside electromagnetic fields, like what they do to jumpstart the heart, to allow the person to live again.

Some people say they've died and seen the afterlife. Maybe that afterlife is a prime form of electromagnetic energy I haven't experienced yet. I consider consciousness to be a wave rather than a particle, because waves are ever changing, whereas particles don't.

If you ever heard of Occam's Razor, it states that the simplest solution is usually the best one. While philosophers and theologians write books on consciousness and the afterlife, maybe it's just as simple as one word: electromagnetism.

The article goes on to say that this may be the reason why AI hasn't become aware yet: we need to develop AI with an electromagnetic field to produce its consciousness.

Let me know what you think, and if I'm missing anything about this topic.
 
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George-ananda

Advaita Vedanta, Theosophy, Spiritualism
Premium Member
I voted 'Other (Give response)'

In my Advaita Vedanta (non-dual) Hindu and Theosophical beliefs Consciousness/Brahman is fundamental and non-physical.

It is not clear to me how electromagnetism could ever produce what we call consciousness.
 

The Hammer

Skald
Premium Member
Even if it is electromagnetic forces. By way of the conservation of energy it gets repurposed somewhere.

Who is to know whether this repurpose gains sentience again or not?
 

Fool

ALL in all
Premium Member
Very interesting article here explains a lot about consciousness.

Is "the soul" just electromagnetic energy our brains create while we're alive? Or are they entirely different concepts? Is it matter and soul or matter and energy? Is consciousness just a wave of electromagnetism the mind develops throughout our lives?

I side with science. I completely agree with the article and do believe that consciousness is a weak magnetic field we observe while we're alive. And when the brain doesn't have the ability to produce that electromagnetism, I'll die.

However, I like to think that it is somehow possible there could be an afterlife. The only way I could see the afterlife existing from this data is if we somehow kicked the brain to overdrive using outside electromagnetic fields, like what they do to jumpstart the heart, to allow the person to live again.

Some people say they've died and seen the afterlife. Maybe that afterlife is a prime form of electromagnetic energy I haven't experienced yet. I consider consciousness to be a wave rather than a particle, because waves are ever changing, whereas particles don't.

If you ever heard of Occam's Razor, it stats that the simplest solution is usually the best one. While philosophers and theologians write books on consciousness and the afterlife, maybe it's just as simple as one word: electromagnetism.

The article goes on to say that this may be the reason why AI hasn't become aware yet: we need to develop AI with an electromagnetic field to produce its consciousness.

Let me know what you think, and if I'm missing anything about this topic.
it is three parts as understood by edgar cayce, alchemy, and quantum physics. fields, waves, and particles


And as the electrical vibrations are given, know that Life itself - to be sure - is the Creative Force or God, yet its manifestations in man are electrical - or vibratory. Know then that the force in nature that is called electrical or electricity is that same force ye worship as Creative or God in action! Seeing this, feeling this, knowing this, ye will find that not only does the body become revivified, but by the creating in every atom of its being the knowledge of the activity of this Creative Force or Principle as related to spirit, mind, body - all three are renewed. #EdgarCayce reading 1299-1
This reading is powerful! What is your take on it?

 

ChristineM

"Be strong", I whispered to my coffee.
Premium Member
To continue, consciousness appears to be located in the oldest, most primative areas of the brain indicating that much less evolved animals also have consciousness
 

Exaltist Ethan

Bridging the Gap Between Believers and Skeptics
I was afraid of everybody answering other. :(

If you answer other give us your take on consciousness!
 

Spirit of Light

Be who ever you want
Very interesting article here explains a lot about consciousness.

Is "the soul" just electromagnetic energy our brains create while we're alive? Or are they entirely different concepts? Is it matter and soul or matter and energy? Is consciousness just a wave of electromagnetism the mind develops throughout our lives?

I side with science. I completely agree with the article and do believe that consciousness is a weak magnetic field we observe while we're alive. And when the brain doesn't have the ability to produce that electromagnetism, I'll die.

However, I like to think that it is somehow possible there could be an afterlife. The only way I could see the afterlife existing from this data is if we somehow kicked the brain to overdrive using outside electromagnetic fields, like what they do to jumpstart the heart, to allow the person to live again.

Some people say they've died and seen the afterlife. Maybe that afterlife is a prime form of electromagnetic energy I haven't experienced yet. I consider consciousness to be a wave rather than a particle, because waves are ever changing, whereas particles don't.

If you ever heard of Occam's Razor, it states that the simplest solution is usually the best one. While philosophers and theologians write books on consciousness and the afterlife, maybe it's just as simple as one word: electromagnetism.

The article goes on to say that this may be the reason why AI hasn't become aware yet: we need to develop AI with an electromagnetic field to produce its consciousness.

Let me know what you think, and if I'm missing anything about this topic.
Awarness of being(existence)
 

exchemist

Veteran Member
Very interesting article here explains a lot about consciousness.

Is "the soul" just electromagnetic energy our brains create while we're alive? Or are they entirely different concepts? Is it matter and soul or matter and energy? Is consciousness just a wave of electromagnetism the mind develops throughout our lives?

I side with science. I completely agree with the article and do believe that consciousness is a weak magnetic field we observe while we're alive. And when the brain doesn't have the ability to produce that electromagnetism, I'll die.

However, I like to think that it is somehow possible there could be an afterlife. The only way I could see the afterlife existing from this data is if we somehow kicked the brain to overdrive using outside electromagnetic fields, like what they do to jumpstart the heart, to allow the person to live again.

Some people say they've died and seen the afterlife. Maybe that afterlife is a prime form of electromagnetic energy I haven't experienced yet. I consider consciousness to be a wave rather than a particle, because waves are ever changing, whereas particles don't.

If you ever heard of Occam's Razor, it states that the simplest solution is usually the best one. While philosophers and theologians write books on consciousness and the afterlife, maybe it's just as simple as one word: electromagnetism.

The article goes on to say that this may be the reason why AI hasn't become aware yet: we need to develop AI with an electromagnetic field to produce its consciousness.

Let me know what you think, and if I'm missing anything about this topic.
One thing you may be missing is that it is impossible to have energy on its own. Energy is a property of some physical system. If you have no physical system, whether it be made of matter or just fields, there can't be energy.

So any afterlife due to "energy" requires the presence of physical fields or matter, i.e. entities that can be detected by the methods of science. That would seem to present a number of problems.

(Incidentally, Ockham's Razor does not say the simplest solution is usually the best. It says that an explanation should not be unnecessarily complicated: non sunt multiplicanda entia sine necessitate: entities are not to be multiplied without necessity. The implication of that is that the explanation must always be complicated enough to account fully for what we observe. If it's too simple to do that, it's no good.)
 

Exaltist Ethan

Bridging the Gap Between Believers and Skeptics
One thing you may be missing is that it is impossible to have energy on its own. Energy is a property of some physical system. If you have no physical system, whether it be made of matter or just fields, there can't be energy.

So any afterlife due to "energy" requires the presence of physical fields or matter, i.e. entities that can be detected by the methods of science. That would seem to present a number of problems.

All this does is rule out an afterlife that doesn't have a physical system. And I didn't say I necessarily believed in an afterlife. I want to believe in an afterlife because it seems more pleasant than oblivion. If this hypothesis is correct however the only afterlife that could exist would be in nature itself, not in a spiritual or soul-driven realm.

As for the problems you are implying, such as, if there's a physical afterlife why is there no evidence of lost people regaining some consciousness. Well, maybe their consciousness becomes part of something greater than themselves, something that maybe they themselves cannot testify or issue credence on, but know still in some way that they still exist?

I don't know. It seems pretty obvious that there isn't an afterlfe. At least, not yet... And if there was... Well, I could go into my actual views on this but I wanted to hear what other people had to say on this.

(Incidentally, Ockham's Razor does not say the simplest solution is usually the best. It says that an explanation should not be unnecessarily complicated: non sunt multiplicanda entia sine necessitate: entities are not to be multiplied without necessity. The implication of that is that the explanation must always be complicated enough to account fully for what we observe. If it's too simple to do that, it's no good.)

OK. I get it.
 

SalixIncendium

अहं ब्रह्मास्मि
Staff member
Premium Member
Consciousness is awareness devoid of attachment, desire, judgment, and ego. It is the impartial observer.
 

Brickjectivity

Veteran Member
Staff member
Premium Member
There is a chance however fleeting that our minds are more than mere biological phenomena or that they reflect something greater than themselves. This is mere wishful thinking, but it could be that our minds follow a pattern with physical matter only a shadow of that pattern. Evidence does not support this, however. It is obvious that our minds can be affected by physical injury to our brains. It seems the personality and morality of a person is subject to their brain and any physical changes to it.

'Soul' is an overloaded English term that changes with the sentence, the mood, the conversation. Some people think of the soul as an identity without any knowledge attached. For example reincarnation involves souls that enter life without knowledge, gain knowledge then leave it behind. Soul can refer to different things, so its good to be specific.
 

exchemist

Veteran Member
All this does is rule out an afterlife that doesn't have a physical system. And I didn't say I necessarily believed in an afterlife. I want to believe in an afterlife because it seems more pleasant than oblivion. If this hypothesis is correct however the only afterlife that could exist would be in nature itself, not in a spiritual or soul-driven realm.

As for the problems you are implying, such as, if there's a physical afterlife why is there no evidence of lost people regaining some consciousness. Well, maybe their consciousness becomes part of something greater than themselves, something that maybe they themselves cannot testify or issue credence on, but know still in some way that they still exist?

I don't know. It seems pretty obvious that there isn't an afterlfe. At least, not yet... And if there was... Well, I could go into my actual views on this but I wanted to hear what other people had to say on this.



OK. I get it.
As for my own view, it seems to me consciousness is not a thing but an activity: the activity of the brain. That activity consists of electrochemical signals between neurons. The brain requires chemical energy to be active, provided by metabolism in the cells , which is converted eventually to heat.

I am not sure why this researcher thinks the EM fields that accompany electrochemical signalling play a role. His paper is poorly written and hard to follow.
 
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Heyo

Veteran Member
Very interesting article here explains a lot about consciousness.

Is "the soul" just electromagnetic energy our brains create while we're alive? Or are they entirely different concepts? Is it matter and soul or matter and energy? Is consciousness just a wave of electromagnetism the mind develops throughout our lives?

I side with science. I completely agree with the article and do believe that consciousness is a weak magnetic field we observe while we're alive. And when the brain doesn't have the ability to produce that electromagnetism, I'll die.

However, I like to think that it is somehow possible there could be an afterlife. The only way I could see the afterlife existing from this data is if we somehow kicked the brain to overdrive using outside electromagnetic fields, like what they do to jumpstart the heart, to allow the person to live again.

Some people say they've died and seen the afterlife. Maybe that afterlife is a prime form of electromagnetic energy I haven't experienced yet. I consider consciousness to be a wave rather than a particle, because waves are ever changing, whereas particles don't.

If you ever heard of Occam's Razor, it states that the simplest solution is usually the best one. While philosophers and theologians write books on consciousness and the afterlife, maybe it's just as simple as one word: electromagnetism.

The article goes on to say that this may be the reason why AI hasn't become aware yet: we need to develop AI with an electromagnetic field to produce its consciousness.

Let me know what you think, and if I'm missing anything about this topic.
I voted "other" because the idea of a field having or creating "consciousness" (whatever that is) seems very strange (a.k.a. bull****) to me. Is that journal a referred journal in neuroscience?
 
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