A review and update of a controversial 20-year-old theory of consciousness published in Physics of Life Reviews claims that consciousness derives from deeper level, finer scale activities inside brain neurons. The recent discovery of quantum vibrations in "microtubules" inside brain neurons corroborates this theory, according to review authors Stuart Hameroff and Sir Roger Penrose. They suggest that EEG rhythms (brain waves) also derive from deeper level microtubule vibrations, and that from a practical standpoint, treating brain microtubule vibrations could benefit a host of mental, neurological, and cognitive conditions. The theory, called "orchestrated objective reduction" ('Orch OR'), was first put forward in the mid-1990s by eminent mathematical physicist Sir Roger Penrose, FRS, Mathematical Institute and Wadham College, University of Oxford, and prominent anesthesiologist Stuart Hameroff, MD, Anesthesiology, Psychology and Center for Consciousness Studies, The University of Arizona, Tucson. They suggested that quantum vibrational computations in microtubules were "orchestrated" ("Orch") by synaptic inputs and memory stored in microtubules, and terminated by Penrose "objective reduction" ('OR'), hence "Orch OR." Microtubules are major components of the cell structural skeleton. Orch OR was harshly criticized from its inception, as the brain was considered too "warm, wet, and noisy" for seemingly delicate quantum processes.. However, evidence has now shown warm quantum coherence in plant photosynthesis, bird brain navigation, our sense of smell, and brain microtubules. The recent discovery of warm temperature quantum vibrations in microtubules inside brain neurons by the research group led by Anirban Bandyopadhyay, PhD, at the National Institute of Material Sciences in Tsukuba, Japan (and now at MIT), corroborates the pair's theory and suggests that EEG rhythms also derive from deeper level microtubule vibrations. In addition, work from the laboratory of Roderick G. Eckenhoff, MD, at the University of Pennsylvania, suggests that anesthesia, which selectively erases consciousness while sparing non-conscious brain activities, acts via microtubules in brain neurons. "The origin of consciousness reflects our place in the universe, the nature of our existence. Did consciousness evolve from complex computations among brain neurons, as most scientists assert? Or has consciousness, in some sense, been here all along, as spiritual approaches maintain?" ask Hameroff and Penrose in the current review. "This opens a potential Pandora's Box, but our theory accommodates both these views, suggesting consciousness derives from quantum vibrations in microtubules, protein polymers inside brain neurons, which both govern neuronal and synaptic function, and connect brain processes to self-organizing processes in the fine scale, 'proto-conscious' quantum structure of reality." After 20 years of skeptical criticism, "the evidence now clearly supports Orch OR," continue Hameroff and Penrose. "Our new paper updates the evidence, clarifies Orch OR quantum bits, or "qubits," as helical pathways in microtubule lattices, rebuts critics, and reviews 20 testable predictions of Orch OR published in 1998 -- of these, six are confirmed and none refuted." An important new facet of the theory is introduced. Microtubule quantum vibrations (e.g. in megahertz) appear to interfere and produce much slower EEG "beat frequencies." Despite a century of clinical use, the underlying origins of EEG rhythms have remained a mystery. Clinical trials of brief brain stimulation aimed at microtubule resonances with megahertz mechanical vibrations using transcranial ultrasound have shown reported improvements in mood, and may prove useful against Alzheimer's disease and brain injury in the future. Lead author Stuart Hameroff concludes, "Orch OR is the most rigorous, comprehensive and successfully-tested theory of consciousness ever put forth. From a practical standpoint, treating brain microtubule vibrations could benefit a host of mental, neurological, and cognitive conditions." The review is accompanied by eight commentaries from outside authorities, including an Australian group of Orch OR arch-skeptics. To all, Hameroff and Penrose respond robustly. Penrose, Hameroff and Bandyopadhyay will explore their theories during a session on "Microtubules and the Big Consciousness Debate" at the Brainstorm Sessions, a public three-day event at the Brakke Grond in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, January 16-18, 2014. They will engage skeptics in a debate on the nature of consciousness, and Bandyopadhyay and his team will couple microtubule vibrations from active neurons to play Indian musical instruments. "Consciousness depends on anharmonic vibrations of microtubules inside neurons, similar to certain kinds of Indian music, but unlike Western music which is harmonic," Hameroff explains. [HR][/HR] Story Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140116085105.htm The above story is based on materials provided by Elsevier. Journal References: Stuart Hameroff and Roger Penrose. Consciousness in the universe: A review of the ‘Orch OR’ theory. Physics of Life Reviews, 2013 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plrev.2013.08.002 Stuart Hameroff, MD, and Roger Penrose. Reply to criticism of the ‘Orch OR qubit’–‘Orchestrated objective reduction’ is scientifically justified. Physics of Life Reviews, 2013 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plrev.2013.11.00 Stuart Hameroff, Roger Penrose. Consciousness in the universe. Physics of Life Reviews, 2013; DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plrev.2013.08.002 [HR][/HR]
Imagine that. Orch OR theory having a "news development" in the evidence sense. Let the trial period commence for "Cold Fusion Meltdowns" and "Faster-than-light Neutrino Syndromes" to have the opportunity to poke their heads up from cracks in the surface of such offered, pristine interpretations of data.
Roger Penrose has the merit of being of the few authors who has taken up issues that had been relegated to speculative ground -or, historically, have been the study object and reflection of philosophy or religion -and theorize them using science instruments. His works are truly recommendable.
...then there are the quasiperiodic tilings of the plane he discovered that we now term "Penrose Tilings" and his work with Steven Hawking.
That seems pretty cool; I never thought that the brain was not affected by quantum mechanics. How wrong I was. *facepalm*
When you talk about microtubules, what is implied, but not mentioned, is the impact of water. Consciousness works in water and the hydration of the microtubules has an impact on their configurational shapes, with the activity of the local water impacting the configurational hydration. Water can exist in high and low density domaines with each having a different activity and therefore a different configurational hydration impact on the microtubules. The water will play the microtubules like a musical instrument. If you look at a microtubule, this has a layer of hydrogen bonded water with very low activity. Even if you placed the microtubules in a centrifuge you will not be able to kick off this water since it is part of the microtubule structure. This water should not be active but can be through quantum tunneling. In most chemical reaction reactants need to climb an energy hill then go do the other side as shown below. This tightly bound water should not be very active since there is an energy hill. But quantum effects allow it to tunnel under the hill from A to B. While bulk equilibrium will reset the tubes. The high/low water density binary allows this instrument to play local and global songs. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Orch-OR has been a favourite of mine for some time primarily because it treats consciousness as a high-order manifestation of a fundamental quality of matter, which I personally think is the only way to make sense of anything. What really blew my hair back though was the idea that this quality could theoretically be fashioned into the same class of phenomena (not necessarily consciousness as we understand it) by processes other than brain function. Although if we ever encountered a complex system that manifested something resembling human (or even animal) consciousness, we'd probably end up calling that a brain too, no matter how alien it seemed to us. Although on the topic of alien life (or whatever), that there may be more than one way to skin this particular cat is just another reason why it could be more alien to us than we can possibly imagine.
Penrose and Hameroff have probably been mightily striving to subdue the impulse to crow a partial "I told you so" to their mainstream opponents since the first glimmerings of "evidence has now shown warm quantum coherence in plant photosynthesis, bird brain navigation, our sense of smell..." during the last decade. Especially Penrose, who was deeply savaged by them in the early '90s. But caution should still be warranted on their part, as a lot more publicized events than the two I could recall have blown-up in the faces of their proponents' premature "Eureka!" outcry.
