In his seminal book "The Historic Reality of Christian Culture" the historian Christopher Dawson wrote that Renaissance started when Charlemagne was made emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (Referred to by the name: the Carolingian Empire). And with Renaissance calculated since then in the 9th century AD, it follows that humanism which St. Francis of Assisi demonstrated grew gradually in the West, while at the same time the Christian East suffered at the hands of Islamic military conquests. In the 13th century, the reform ushered by St. Thomas Aquinas, and supported by the popes, used Aristotle's philosophy to shed a deeper light on the inquiring philosophical mind that developed in the West into scientific inquiries. According to this great view that is supported by quantum physics, God in creating everything let it be and grow on its own. i.e. God does not predetermine things but let them exist and grow. Philosophy continues to be the way humans ask about their intelligence. In the 17th century, the father of classic physics, Isaac Newton, called his writings philosophia. Contemporary to him Blaise Pascal was another genius from France who excelled at mathematics, physics, and philosophy. Descartes, considered "Father" of modern philosophy, formulated the modern version of the mind–body problem. In metaphysics, he provided arguments for the existence of God, to show that the essence of matter is extension, and that the essence of mind is thought. For more on philosophy the reader may wish to read "The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy" (see the link at Today's Questions blog here.)
At the end of the 19th century, physicists were unable to explain why the observed spectrum of black body radiation, which is still considered to have been accurately measured, diverged significantly at higher frequencies from that predicted by existing theories. In 1900, Max Planck empirically derived a formula for the observed spectrum. He assumed that a hypothetical electrically-charged oscillator that contained black-body radiation could only change its energy in a minimal increment, E, that was proportional to the frequency of its associated electromagnetic wave. He was able to calculate the proportionality constant, h, from the experimental measurements, and that constant is named in his honor. In 1905, the value E was associated by Albert Einstein with a "quantum" or minimal element of the energy of the electromagnetic wave itself. The light quantum behaved in some respects as an electrically neutral particle, as opposed to an electromagnetic wave. It was eventually called a photon. Much of the above scientific findings can be traced in my posts here, here and here. According to the late physicist Stephen Hawking, the universe expanded from a very tiny 'singularity' starting with an inflationary period at the Big Bang (the beginning of creation). Robert Jastrow received his PhD. in theoretical physics from Columbia University in 1948 and was the first chairman of NASA’s Lunar Exploration Committee, which established the scientific goals for the exploration of the moon during the Apollo Lunar Landing in 1969. In an interview reported in Time Magazine and in New York Times in 1978, Jastrow indicated that the achievements in NASA's space program were like men climbing a huge mountain only to find theologians who preceded them waiting at the top.
According to the Anthropic Principle (regardless of whether it is Weak or Strong), the universe is fine tuned for life to a very accurate degree. There are some 30 constants that govern the laws of physics (such as Pi, Planck’s constant…etc). If one constant is slightly changed, the universe would end or collapse. Stephen Hawking said that if the rate of expansion one second after the Big Bang had been smaller by even one part in a hundred thousand million million, the universe would have recollapsed before life could have formed. Freeman Dyson draws the following conclusion “I conclude from the existence of these accidents that the universe is unexpectedly hospitable place for living creatures to make their home in. Being a scientist, trained in the habits of thought and language of the twentieth century rather than the eighteenth, I do not claim that the architecture of the universe proves the existence of God. I claim only that the architecture of the universe is consistent with the hypothesis that mind plays an essential role in its functioning” (Ian Barbour, When Science Meets Religion, 2000 - See also Paul Davies, Cosmic Jackpot, 2007).
In the natural world of biology, Charles Darwin developed his theory of evolution with his book "On The Origin of Species by Natural Selection" which he further refined in "The Descent of Man". His theory has been since challenged - see "The Punctuated equilibrium" by S.J. Gould at Harvard University in which he explained the Cambrian Explosion which confirms that, contrary to Darwin's hypothesis, most evolution is characterized by long periods of evolutionary stability, which is infrequently punctuated by swift periods of branching speciation. With a PhD. in Philosophy from Princeton University, Professor David Berlinski was interviewed in June 2019 by Hoover Institution's Research Fellow Peter Robinson on his book “The Deniable Darwin” in which Berlinski mounts criticism of Darwin's theory based on the Cambrian Explosion (the interview can be watched here). In yet a more recent article published on August 29, 2019 in Quanta Magazine, explorers show that modern humans and more ancient hominins interbred many times throughout Eurasia and Africa, and the genetic flow went both ways. It brings our attention to Yuval Noah Harari's book "A Brief History of Humankind" in which he outlines the stages of human development in 4 sections: The Cognitive Revolution; The Agricultural Revolution; The Unification of Humankind; and The Scientific Revolution...
Here is also a little thesis that I wrote in my studies for a Master's degree in Information Systems at the University of Phoenix (which I obtained in May 2010):
Complex Projects versus Complex Mind!https://todayquestions.
I would like to offer a glimpse to the reality of the interconnectedness of projects in different sciences only because they all have in common the uniqueness of the human person. Quantum physics which I studied in my Engineering undergraduate studies further confirms new understandings of relatedness. I will mainly base my post on:
1) The article by Mizell and Malone published in Engineering Management Journal on cost estimation used at NASA (December 2007)
2) Scientific American article on the origins of the mind (September 2009 issue)
3) Quantum physics, explained in numerous works by great contemporary physicists
Marc Hauser, past professor of psychology, human evolutionary biology, and organismic and evolutionary biology at Harvard University, proposes what he calls “humaniqueness” as properties of the distinctive mind of humans that sets it apart from the minds of other creatures. Professor Hauser shows the following characteristics of the human uniqueness (My post here has to be limited to only mentioning them in brief):
1. Generative computation: the ability to create a virtually limitless variety of “expressions,” be they arrangements of words, sequences of notes, combinations of actions, or strings of mathematical symbols
2. The capacity for the promiscuous combination of ideas. We routinely connect thoughts from different domains of knowledge, allowing our understanding of art, sex, space, causality and friendship to combine. From this mingling, new laws, social relationships and technologies can result.
3. The use of mental symbols. We can spontaneously convert any sensory experience—real or imagined— into a symbol that we can keep to ourselves or express to others through language, art, music or computer code.
4. Only humans engage in abstract thought. Unlike animal thoughts, which are largely anchored in sensory and perceptual experiences, many of ours have no clear connection to such events.
We alone ponder the likes of unicorns and aliens, nouns and verbs, infinity and God. “Indeed, mounting evidence indicates that, in contrast to Darwin’s theory of a continuity of mind between humans and other species, a profound gap separates our intellect from the animal kind. This is not to say that our mental faculties sprang fully formed out of nowhere. Researchers have found some of the building blocks of human cognition in other species. But these building blocks make up only the cement footprint of the skyscraper that is the human mind. The evolutionary origins of our cognitive abilities thus remain rather hazy. Clarity is emerging from novel insights and experimental technologies, however.”
Hauser thus establishes the basis of different mind in humans. It shows, in contrast to Darwin’s theory, a profound gap between us and animals, or as the well-known paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin put it, there is a leap from the biosphere to the noosphere which is the sphere of the human mind that can ask himself about himself. The complexity of the human mind, unmatched by that of any other creature has been confirmed by much recent research. Hauser gives this example: “One of our most basic tools, the No. 2 pencil, used by every test taker, illustrates the exceptional freedom of the human mind as compared with the limited scope of animal cognition. You hold the painted wood, write with the lead, and erase with the pink rubber held in place by a metal ring. Four different materials, each with a particular function, all wrapped up into a single tool. And although that tool was made for writing, it can also pin hair up into a bun, bookmark a page or stab an annoying insect. Animal tools, in contrast—such as the sticks chimps use to fish termites out from their mounds—are composed of a single material, designed for a single function and never used for other functions. None have the combinatorial properties of the pencil.”
Let’s now compare the above with some of the findings & conclusions proposed by Mizell & Malone for complex projects at NASA:
First: The cost estimating process becomes harder as the complexity and size of projects increase. This is particularly clear from the fact that key variables are not known at the start of large projects – for example staffing requirements are unknown with certainty at that point while client management requires a budget estimate before sign off. Moreover, software development activities are labor intensive. They are affected by and affect HUMAN PERFORMANCE. This shows that complex projects for the most complex creature require an understanding of subtle cognitive functions at least in human relationships e.g. human resources staffing and the effect human performance has on delivering a project which in turn affect human performance in next projects. Even these relationships cannot be understood in isolation – See below.
Second: Human nature prefers a single number for an estimate as opposed to a range of numbers even though a range estimate will have a much higher probability of including an accurate value (Boehm and Fairly, 2000). This is why a range is recommended.
This shows that humans have to deal with ranges of numbers rather than single numbers for their complex projects. Here is a hint about quantum physics which we ought to deal with. Quantum physics stipulates that every process-result is probable until it is measured. According to the Uncertainty Principle, only at the time of measurement is there certainty. Furthermore, John Polkinghorne, retired professor of mathematical physics at Cambridge University, wrote, in one of his latest books: Quantum Physics and Theology, about relationship as science is attempting to discover it at the subnuclear level: “Quantum theory brought to light a remarkable form of entanglement between subatomic particles that have once interacted with each other (the so-called EPR effect), which implies that they remain effectively a single system however far they may subsequently separate spatially- a counterintuitive togetherness-in-separation that has been abundantly confirmed experimentally as a property of nature. The physical world looks more and more like a universe that would be the fitting creation of the trinitarian God, the One whose deepest reality is relational”
Third: Expert judgment relies on experience of past projects and industry average which fail to tell the entire story. On the contrary, every project is unique in its environment and organization factors. This is true since we know that no one human can subsist in isolation – The environment, the tribe, society or whatever makes up a human organization is vital for human action. This has been shown also in apes. Moreover, subjective experience counts. This is what has been missing in the Newtonian world.
This is why Mizell and Malone propose a simulation model as follows:
1. Use a software development process model: A graphical representation is useful to educate decision-makers on the inherent complexity of large software projects
2. Capture uncertainty for key parameters by using probability distributions: Three are most important: a. Size of project/product; b. Productivity of project team; c. Defect rates. This will allow us to develop range estimates that consider the uncertainty that exists before the start of a project.
3. Run Model and Obtain Confidence Intervals for Effort and Schedule: Calculate confidence intervals and focus on the top half of the confidence interval to dissuade managers from accepting the lower part in order to meet the lowest possible cost and schedule.
4. Compare Model Results with Other Estimating Techniques.
5. Use model results to debate unrealistic budgets: Run it with animation so that decision-makers can visualize the process and its complexity.
6. Update Model with Actual project data as project evolves (Experience): This can be very useful in analyzing problem areas and effort based on actual project data to-date.
We can therefore safely conclude that:
1. The human mind is the most complex in all creatures on earth
2. However, this mind requires complex computer tools to realize its complex projects today.
3. Which requires this mind to use quantum physics probabilities 4.
Which then (according to the EPR Experiment) shows that this mind cannot stay in isolation of other creatures – Relationship is of the essence to cultivate – How more important would it be to cultivate it in business and social life?
5. That gets us, in my opinion, into the most fundamental of all principles: Communication, collaboration and, if possible, love. (Comment for this blog: This was a post in my Master studies of Information Systems. Christian teaching is referenced multiple times particularly in the work of John Polkinghorne, and in the final conclusion on love as the epitome of the Christian way of life.)
References: Mizell, C., Malone, L. (2007), A Project Management Approach to Using Simulation for Cost Estimation on Large, Complex Software Development Projects, Engineering Management Journal, Retrieved on September 3, 2009 from http://web.ebscohost.com/
Hauser, M. (2009), Origin of the Mind, Scientific America, Retrieved on September 5, 2009 from http://www.sciamdigital.
Polkinghorne, J. (2008), Quantum Physics and Theology, Oxford University Press.
2) Scientific American article on the origins of the mind (September 2009 issue)
3) Quantum physics, explained in numerous works by great contemporary physicists
Marc Hauser, past professor of psychology, human evolutionary biology, and organismic and evolutionary biology at Harvard University, proposes what he calls “humaniqueness” as properties of the distinctive mind of humans that sets it apart from the minds of other creatures. Professor Hauser shows the following characteristics of the human uniqueness (My post here has to be limited to only mentioning them in brief):
1. Generative computation: the ability to create a virtually limitless variety of “expressions,” be they arrangements of words, sequences of notes, combinations of actions, or strings of mathematical symbols
2. The capacity for the promiscuous combination of ideas. We routinely connect thoughts from different domains of knowledge, allowing our understanding of art, sex, space, causality and friendship to combine. From this mingling, new laws, social relationships and technologies can result.
3. The use of mental symbols. We can spontaneously convert any sensory experience—real or imagined— into a symbol that we can keep to ourselves or express to others through language, art, music or computer code.
4. Only humans engage in abstract thought. Unlike animal thoughts, which are largely anchored in sensory and perceptual experiences, many of ours have no clear connection to such events.
We alone ponder the likes of unicorns and aliens, nouns and verbs, infinity and God. “Indeed, mounting evidence indicates that, in contrast to Darwin’s theory of a continuity of mind between humans and other species, a profound gap separates our intellect from the animal kind. This is not to say that our mental faculties sprang fully formed out of nowhere. Researchers have found some of the building blocks of human cognition in other species. But these building blocks make up only the cement footprint of the skyscraper that is the human mind. The evolutionary origins of our cognitive abilities thus remain rather hazy. Clarity is emerging from novel insights and experimental technologies, however.”
Hauser thus establishes the basis of different mind in humans. It shows, in contrast to Darwin’s theory, a profound gap between us and animals, or as the well-known paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin put it, there is a leap from the biosphere to the noosphere which is the sphere of the human mind that can ask himself about himself. The complexity of the human mind, unmatched by that of any other creature has been confirmed by much recent research. Hauser gives this example: “One of our most basic tools, the No. 2 pencil, used by every test taker, illustrates the exceptional freedom of the human mind as compared with the limited scope of animal cognition. You hold the painted wood, write with the lead, and erase with the pink rubber held in place by a metal ring. Four different materials, each with a particular function, all wrapped up into a single tool. And although that tool was made for writing, it can also pin hair up into a bun, bookmark a page or stab an annoying insect. Animal tools, in contrast—such as the sticks chimps use to fish termites out from their mounds—are composed of a single material, designed for a single function and never used for other functions. None have the combinatorial properties of the pencil.”
Let’s now compare the above with some of the findings & conclusions proposed by Mizell & Malone for complex projects at NASA:
First: The cost estimating process becomes harder as the complexity and size of projects increase. This is particularly clear from the fact that key variables are not known at the start of large projects – for example staffing requirements are unknown with certainty at that point while client management requires a budget estimate before sign off. Moreover, software development activities are labor intensive. They are affected by and affect HUMAN PERFORMANCE. This shows that complex projects for the most complex creature require an understanding of subtle cognitive functions at least in human relationships e.g. human resources staffing and the effect human performance has on delivering a project which in turn affect human performance in next projects. Even these relationships cannot be understood in isolation – See below.
Second: Human nature prefers a single number for an estimate as opposed to a range of numbers even though a range estimate will have a much higher probability of including an accurate value (Boehm and Fairly, 2000). This is why a range is recommended.
This shows that humans have to deal with ranges of numbers rather than single numbers for their complex projects. Here is a hint about quantum physics which we ought to deal with. Quantum physics stipulates that every process-result is probable until it is measured. According to the Uncertainty Principle, only at the time of measurement is there certainty. Furthermore, John Polkinghorne, retired professor of mathematical physics at Cambridge University, wrote, in one of his latest books: Quantum Physics and Theology, about relationship as science is attempting to discover it at the subnuclear level: “Quantum theory brought to light a remarkable form of entanglement between subatomic particles that have once interacted with each other (the so-called EPR effect), which implies that they remain effectively a single system however far they may subsequently separate spatially- a counterintuitive togetherness-in-separation that has been abundantly confirmed experimentally as a property of nature. The physical world looks more and more like a universe that would be the fitting creation of the trinitarian God, the One whose deepest reality is relational”
Third: Expert judgment relies on experience of past projects and industry average which fail to tell the entire story. On the contrary, every project is unique in its environment and organization factors. This is true since we know that no one human can subsist in isolation – The environment, the tribe, society or whatever makes up a human organization is vital for human action. This has been shown also in apes. Moreover, subjective experience counts. This is what has been missing in the Newtonian world.
This is why Mizell and Malone propose a simulation model as follows:
1. Use a software development process model: A graphical representation is useful to educate decision-makers on the inherent complexity of large software projects
2. Capture uncertainty for key parameters by using probability distributions: Three are most important: a. Size of project/product; b. Productivity of project team; c. Defect rates. This will allow us to develop range estimates that consider the uncertainty that exists before the start of a project.
3. Run Model and Obtain Confidence Intervals for Effort and Schedule: Calculate confidence intervals and focus on the top half of the confidence interval to dissuade managers from accepting the lower part in order to meet the lowest possible cost and schedule.
4. Compare Model Results with Other Estimating Techniques.
5. Use model results to debate unrealistic budgets: Run it with animation so that decision-makers can visualize the process and its complexity.
6. Update Model with Actual project data as project evolves (Experience): This can be very useful in analyzing problem areas and effort based on actual project data to-date.
We can therefore safely conclude that:
1. The human mind is the most complex in all creatures on earth
2. However, this mind requires complex computer tools to realize its complex projects today.
3. Which requires this mind to use quantum physics probabilities 4.
Which then (according to the EPR Experiment) shows that this mind cannot stay in isolation of other creatures – Relationship is of the essence to cultivate – How more important would it be to cultivate it in business and social life?
5. That gets us, in my opinion, into the most fundamental of all principles: Communication, collaboration and, if possible, love. (Comment for this blog: This was a post in my Master studies of Information Systems. Christian teaching is referenced multiple times particularly in the work of John Polkinghorne, and in the final conclusion on love as the epitome of the Christian way of life.)
References: Mizell, C., Malone, L. (2007), A Project Management Approach to Using Simulation for Cost Estimation on Large, Complex Software Development Projects, Engineering Management Journal, Retrieved on September 3, 2009 from http://web.ebscohost.com/
Hauser, M. (2009), Origin of the Mind, Scientific America, Retrieved on September 5, 2009 from http://www.sciamdigital.
Polkinghorne, J. (2008), Quantum Physics and Theology, Oxford University Press.
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On Sunday the 1st of September 2019, the Jesuit scholar Fr. Henri Boulad pronounced a homily (Titled: Moi, moi, MOI... centre du monde ...Readers may wish to watch it in French here; Cathédrale Marie Reine du Monde - Montréal). In his charismatic approach, he commented on the Gospel's reading where the Lord utters the words "For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (The reading on the theme of humility can be found here: Luke 14:1; 7-14). Fr. Boulad explains how little is a person in space and time compared to the 7 billion persons who live on planet Earth, and in turn how Earth is only a little planet in the solar system; yet the solar system itself is only a tiny fraction in a vast galaxy called "The Milky Way" that is part of some 100 billion galaxies in the universe.
I had corresponded with Fr. Boulad on the quantum universe for years since 2013. I also sent him more information in congratulating him on publishing his book "ONENESS, WHOLENESS AND HOLINESS - The social and sacred dimension of the mouth and the meal" and, on that occasion, his lecture in Budapest on August 29, 2019.
I made updates to my post in June 2018 here:
Black Holes in the Cosmic Inflation, Quantum Physics, and New Technology
You will also find more info related to quantum emergence of the cosmos in my post published on January 29, 2019 here:
The Sacred Cosmos of God
In early January 2019, NOVA published a documentary titled:
Einstein's Quantum Riddle
Other earlier posts that may be of interest (including the Anthropic Principle for life) are found here:
Has Science Discovered God?
The Jesuit scientist Teilhard de Chardin is highly appreciated. His most distinct thought is the complexification of matter into the biosphere which would be encompassed in the leap from the animal realm to the noosphere or human mind which, while still biologically animal, can ask himself about himself and raise questions about his origin and future. This is the step where Man starts to worship a divinity that, in his research, Marcea Eliade categorizes as the "Sky God." Revelation in the Judaic-Christian Tradition is a response by God to man's fearful questions that progressively reveal the merciful and faithful God. In Jesus Christ, God is fully revealed as eternal Love.
In his book "Introduction to Christianity" the young Joseph Ratzinger (later {Pope Benedict XVI) wrote in 1968 about Teilhard de Chardin as part of his excellent exposition on the Resurrection of Christ:
"We can start again from the dictum about love and death and say: Only where someone values love more highly than life, that is, only where someone is ready to put life second to love, for the sake of love, can love be stronger and more than death. If it is to be more than death, it must first be more than mere life. But if it could be this, not just in intention but in reality, then that would mean at the same time that the power of love had risen superior to the power of the merely biological and taken it into its service. To use Teilhard de Chardin's terminology; where that took place, the decisive complexity or "complexification" would have occurred; bios, too, would be encompassed by and incorporated in the power of love. It would cross the boundary--death--and create unity where death divides. If the power of love for another were so strong somewhere that it could keep alive not just his memory, the shadow of his "I", but that person himself, then a new stage in life would have been reached. This would mean that the realm of biological evolutions and mutations had been left behind and the leap made to a quite different plane, on which love was no longer subject to bios but made use of it. Such a final stage of "mutation" and "evolution" would itself no longer be a biological stage; it would signify the end of the sovereignty of bios, which is at the same time the sovereignty of death; it would open up the realm that the Greek Bible calls zoe, that is, definitive life, which has left behind the rule of death. The last stage of evolution needed by the world to reach its goal would then no longer be achieved within the realm of biology but by the spirit, by freedom, by love. It would no longer be evolution but decision and gift in one." The full exposition can be found here:
http://todayquestions.
More here: Thoughts of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J.
Since the end of July 2019, I had correspondence with Mrs. Maggie Ciskanik, the senior writer at the Magis Center (here), founded by Fr. Robert Spitzer, S.J., Ph.D. retired President of Gonzaga University, Washington. They have been interested in using some of the posts on quantum physics from my blog. On Monday September 2, I received from them a document titled
There is an enormous corpus of talks, articles, commentaries, and youtube presentations focusing on one of the strangest discoveries of the 20th century: quantum mechanics and its startling attendant features, the principles of uncertainty and superposition. When you consult the resources identified in this post by Mr. George Farahat, be prepared to increase your understanding of how quantum mechanics has changed our understanding of reality, and how it relates to theology.
Two phenomenal lectures by two outstanding professors in two countries have enlightened research about the vast cosmos we live in and its quantum fields that penetrate every creature on earth.
The first is a lecture given by Professor Leo Kowenhoven at Delft University in the Netherlands, 2015 (here). In his talk, Professor Kowenhoven shows how nature itself works through quantum processes. He uses the example of a plant leaf which takes the light of the Sun. Through quantum superposition, electrons find a way to efficiently bind to the oxygen molecule, a process essential for human life. He goes on to explain how “qbits” are necessary in building quantum computers and reveals that he and his team have already made these “quantum bits” in the lab. Some of the most interesting ideas come near the end of the talk (starting around the 11th minute) when he lists the big challenges that super quantum computers can help solve, such as: more efficient energy use and storage, better airplane design, optimization for robotics, machine learning, and the use of nanotechnology in healthcare.
The second lecture, “The Real Building Blocks of the Universe” was given by Professor David Tong at Cambridge University in 2017. In a brilliant summary of quantum theory, he reveals that there are 16 “fields” that interact in a “harmonious dance.” Along the way, Tong also discusses Einstein's Theory of General Relativity (space-time flow), J. J. Thomson's discovery of the electron, Ernest Rutherford's model of the atom (a nucleus made of protons and neutrons with the lighter electrons moving around it), Faraday's discovery of electromagnetism, James Clerk Maxwell's work, Schrodinger's Wave-Particle Equation, Heisenberg's Principle of Uncertainty, and the thought-experiments of Albert Einstein, Boris Podolsky, and Nathan Rosen.
Black holes and quantum theory
A great explanation of black holes, by a panel of experts found in this 2015 World Science Festival presentation, was delivered in the presence of the late British physicist and black hole expert, Professor Stephen Hawking. The presentation also explains the relationship between black holes and quantum theory.
Astonishment at quantum behaviour
In 1982, Alain Aspect and his team were able to experimentally prove that two photons emitted from the same atom will still be in contact tens of miles away. The reader may wish to listen to his lecture here, animated by his love for and “astonishment at” quantum behaviour.
Quantum theory and its relationship to a Trinitarian God
In the printed word, much of the material written by Sir John Polkinghorne, retired professor of mathematical physics at Cambridge University, is very informative and insightful. In one of his latest books, “Quantum Physics and Theology” (2008), he comments on how “relationship” is being discovered even at the subnuclear level:
“Quantum theory brought to light a remarkable form of entanglement between subatomic particles that have once interacted with each other (the so-called EPR effect), which implies that they remain effectively a single system however far they may subsequently separate spatially—a counterintuitive togetherness-in-separation that has been abundantly confirmed experimentally as a property of nature. The physical world looks more and more like a universe that would be the fitting creation of the trinitarian God, the One whose deepest reality is relational.” -Sir John Polkinghorne
Dr. Stephen Barr has written extensively on the relationship of quantum physics and theology as well. (See, for example, his article in First Things here).
What can we conclude?
The above resources reveal and help explain the 2 most important observations in quantum physics:
1. The probabilistic nature of particles which yields the Uncertainty Principle
2. The communication between particles at long distances (quantum entanglement)
From 2 above, we can say that everything must be in a relationship. In Christianity, the concept that God is relatedness or relational is found not only in Holy Scriptures (see for example 1 John 4:8; John 10:30; Col 1:15-19; Phil 2: 6-11; John 15), but also in doctors of the Church like St. Thomas Aquinas and, in our days, Bishop of Rome Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI.
If this is true, then we can say that the cosmos is signed by the stamp of the Triune God of Christians.
George Farahat holds a Masters degree in Information Systems and a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. He is a retired systems analyst who now uses his time to pursue numerous interests which include Biblical theology, anthropology, history of civilizations, and information technology. He regularly shares his insights on his blogspot Today’s Questions. The original post can be found here.
Of course, I can only thank God for having used my writings for the missionaries of Christ today...
