11/29/2023 0 Comments Penrose consciousnessThis theory may resonate with the classical Buddhist view, that consciousness is the “ground” or primordial nature of the universe. In this view, individual consciousness is connected to a universal proto-consciousness. Orch-OR), Penrose posits that consciousness derives from quantum vibrations in microtubules throughout neurons in the brain. ![]() ![]() In his “orchestrated objective reduction” theory (a.k.a. Penrose has employed his beginner’s mind methodology to controversially challenge the prevailing theories of mind and consciousness. When I asked Penrose, after a recent lecture at New York’s Hayden Planetarium, what it is that continues to inspire him in his work, he smiled shyly and said that he likes “to go back to the beginning, or prime, and work from there as a fresh way to see things.” I couldn’t help but think of Shunryu Suzuki’s classic teaching about not knowing, that “in the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” He argues that some physicists base their science on faith - like belief in multiple dimensions - and that some popular theories may be outright fantasy. Penrose suggests that much of what is generally accepted in science, like string theory, is fashionable in part because it is near impossible to prove false. His newest book, Fashion, Faith and Fantasy, challenges the meaning of several well-known theories. Now in his eighties, Penrose remains a tenacious contrarian, and embodies a scientific version of what Zen Buddhists call “not knowing,” fearlessly questioning beloved concepts and theories. He has collaborated with Stephen Hawking on black hole theory and the popular book The Nature of Space and Time, and he is the author of two important books on the nature of mind, The Emperor’s New Mind and Shadows of the Mind. Penrose, a groundbreaking theorist on the nature of mind, is a model for how Buddhists can let go of their assumptions and use empirical inquiry to develop an understanding of the nature of mind and the universe. If you don’t study physics or mathematics, you likely don’t know about Sir Roger Penrose. Roger described it as “impossibility in its purest form.” Photo by Philippe Put. ![]() The famous Penrose Triangle is an impossible object devised by Sir Roger Penrose and his father Lionel Penrose in the 1950s.
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