QUANTUM MECHANICS AND CONSCIOUSNESS

EXPLORING CONSCIOUSNESS BEYOND CHALMERS' HARD PROBLEM

Abstract

This paper explores the concept of quantum consciousness as a potential solution to David Chalmers' hard problem of consciousness, which seeks to explain the subjective nature of awareness and qualia. The work proposes novel frameworks for understanding the connection between physical brain processes and subjective experience by integrating principles of quantum mechanics such as superposition, entanglement, and non-locality. The discussion highlights key theories, such as the Penrose-Hameroff Orch-OR model, and examines the role of quantum coherence in neural networks. Although quantum conscious faces some challenges such as lack of empirical proof; needing a more robust evidence that could explain how a microscopic quantum events could influence the macroscopic behavior of a neural system. It however opens new interdisciplinary pathways. By expanding the framework to include metaphysical perspectives like panpsychism and exploring collective consciousness through quantum entanglement, this approach offers a bold, albeit speculative, step toward bridging the explanatory gap between the physical and the experiential.