A startling new theory to explain human consciousness suggests it emerges from hidden dimensions, rather than just brain activity.
A physicist has claimed that we connect to these invisible planes of the universe when we create art, practice science, philosophize, or dream. This could explain a phenomenon that has eluded scientific understanding for centuries.
Michael Pravica, a physics professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, based the wild idea on hyperdimensionality, the idea that the universe has more dimensions than just the four we perceive: height, length, width, and time.
However, his theory is highly controversial. One scientist even says that the cornerstone of Pravica’s theory “borders on science fiction.”
Physicist Michael Pravica believes that human consciousness transcends the physical world and moves between hidden dimensions
“The simple fact that we can imagine higher dimensions than four in our minds, in our mathematics, is a gift… it’s something that transcends biology,” Pravica said. Popular mechanics.
Scientists have been trying to explain human consciousness and its origins for hundreds of years. Theories vary.
One leading theory suggests that consciousness is related to how much information is integrated between different parts of the brain. The more information is connected and integrated, the more conscious a being is thought to be.
Another proposes that conscious mental states are controlled by top-down signaling in the brain. Top-down signaling refers to the process by which higher brain areas send information, expectations, or context to lower brain areas.
But Pravica’s theory moves beyond the realm of neuroscience and into theoretical physics.
He proposed that in moments of heightened awareness, such as when we enter a dream state or use our brains for deeply creative or intellectual tasks, our consciousness can transcend our physical dimension and enter a higher plane.
At such moments, our consciousness synchronizes with hidden dimensions and receives a flood of inspiration, Pravica says.
To better understand this controversial theory, consider the following scenario.
Imagine that you are a two-dimensional being living in a two-dimensional world, like a character in a comic book. Now imagine that a sphere passes through your field of vision.
The sphere would look like a dot that grows into a larger and larger circle as it approaches, and then gradually shrinks until it is out of sight. You wouldn’t know that it is actually a three-dimensional shape.
Pravica sees us as a version of these 2D characters. Although we exist in a four-dimensional world, we can only perceive matter and energy that is of those four dimensions, just as beings in a 2D world cannot perceive a 3D object.
The limitations of our world prevent us from perceiving higher dimensions, which in theory could exist all around us.
This is the basis of hyperdimensionality: the idea that the universe consists of many dimensions, some of which are hidden because they lie beyond the reach of our physical realm.
Hyperdimensionality is consistent with string theory, which states that reality consists of infinitely small vibrating strings that are smaller than atoms, electrons or quarks.
As the strings vibrate, twist, and fold, they cause effects in multiple invisible dimensions that give rise to all the particles and forces we can observe, from particle physics to gravity.
“String theory is essentially a theory of hyperdimensionality,” Pravica said. “It looks at how the universe works on a subquantum scale.”
Pravica believes that our brains can tap into higher dimensions when we are in a dream state or performing deeply creative or intellectual tasks
While we can observe the effects of these vibrating strings on the physics of our dimension, we cannot observe the hidden dimensions in which they vibrate.
That is to say – we can’t physically observe them.
But our consciousness may be able to use it, says Pravica.
Hyperdimensionality and string theory are widely accepted by physicists, but Pravica’s idea about their relationship to consciousness is more controversial, especially because it blurs the lines between science and spirituality.
Pravica is an Orthodox Christian with a PhD from Harvard. He discovered hyperdimensionality as a way to connect his scientific background with his religious beliefs.
For example, he believes that Jesus could be a hyperdimensional being.
“According to the Bible, Jesus ascended to heaven 40 days after coming to earth. How do you ascend to heaven if you are a four-dimensional being?” Pravica asked.
But because Jesus was hyperdimensional, he could theoretically move between our world and heaven. Heaven could be a world of higher or infinite dimensions, he said.
Pravica’s theory is based on the “God of the Gaps” perspective, in which gaps in scientific knowledge are explained by divine intervention, said Stephen Holler, an associate professor of physics at Fordham University.
He believes that this kind of thinking is insufficient and hinders the scientific research needed to truly understand and explain ineffable phenomena such as human consciousness.
“It’s a bad explanatory mechanism that suppresses the curious nature necessary for good science and teaches that it’s not okay to say, ‘I don’t know,'” Holler told Popular Mechanics.
He points out that our ability to mathematically manipulate higher dimensions is not evidence that they actually exist, or that our consciousness can interact with them.
Furthermore, exploring these higher dimensions is impossible due to the limitations of our current technological capabilities.
Even the world’s most powerful particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, cannot provide real proof that these dimensions exist.
The LHC collides particles at incredibly high speeds, up to the speed of light.
This allows physicists to study the fundamental building blocks of matter and energy and access infinitesimally small dimensions – even smaller than a single proton.
But even the LHC can’t reveal the high-dimensional strings predicted by quantum physics. To get that granular, physicists would need a much more powerful collider.
Without that concrete evidence, Holler says, hyperdimensionality borders on science fiction.
Pravica is optimistic and believes his children can already develop such technology.
Until then, he will continue to support hyperdimensionality and his theory of its relationship to our consciousness.
“I see no other use,” he said. “Why study? Why live?”