In 2009, Robert Lanza, MD, wrote (with Bob Berman) a book called
BIOCENTRISM
How Life and Consciousness are the Keys to Understanding the True Nature of the Universe
On the back cover it says "SCIENCE", but despite repeatedly attempting to use Quantum Mechanics, Relativity and other well known theories and experiments to prove the existence of a universal consciousness (aka God - at the bottom this book is little more than an attempt to recycle Intelligent Design [1] which itself was an attempted refinement of Creationism), flawed reasoning, conflation of facts/ideas and personal experiences lead to a wholly unsatisfying book that ultimately gives up without making a single valid point.
Chapter 1 MUDDY UNIVERSE
An unrelenting critique and takedown of science for its inability to explain some of the fundamental questions. Interestingly, the authors don't consider that the knowledge of science is incomplete and evolving. Solving these issues using the scientific method
"hasn't happened and it won't happen."
Instead the obvious solution is that
"we have ignored a critical component of the cosmos ... This component is Consciousness." (Page 9).
Chapter 2 IN THE BEGINNING THERE WAS ... WHAT?
Using personal experiences of wonder at the beauty and complexity of nature as a springboard to assert that all theories we formulate come from our own minds (true) and that our observations on which those depend are conceptualized in our own brains (also true), so
"we are creating them"
(the theories - Page 13),
"it is perhaps inevitable that a biologist seeks to unify existing theories of the "physical world" with those of the "living world"".
This unification apparently takes the form of a priori censorship:
"Today's preoccupation with unprovable "theories of everything" is a sacrilege to science itself"
and
"we have failed to protect science against speculative theories that have so entered mainstream thinking that they now masquerade as fact". (page 14)
One of his subsequent examples used to support his argument: the "ether" theory of the 19th century, was discarded when it was proven not to hold up to experimental light. This is how the scientific method works. Yet, this same argument is used to reject currently valid theories.
But in the author's view:
"the first step to constructing a credible alternative"
(to the failures of scientific theories)
"is to question the standard view that the universe would exist even if it were empty of life, and absent any consciousness or perception of it."
So here we get to one of the fatal flaws of Biocentrism: the conflation of reality and the perception of reality.
"Without perception there can be no reality".
And in order to justify this, after acknowledging that in the macro world objects remain even when not seen, he goes on a tirade about Quantum Mechanics and the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. This is another fatal flaw: the conflation of the atomic scale and the macro/human scale.
Chapter 3 THE SOUND OF A FALLING TREE
Dr. Lanza is obviously well educated. This chapter describes in perfect detail the processes of perceiving sound and sight, with a tree and a candle as the subjects. Then he goes on to describe in great detail how rainbows occur. All these accurate scientific observations are supposed to be proof that
"What we perceive as reality is a process that involves our consciousness."
But here we encounter the usual conflation of reality and perception of reality. What is true is that what we perceive as reality INVOLVES a process that involves our consciousness. Our perception is NOT reality. Like he points out,
"other creatures receiving the identical stimulus will experience something altogether different, such as a perception of gray, or even have an altogether dissimilar sensation."
Does reality not contain the electromagnetic waves of different frequencies that we can't see? that a dog can't see? What a shame that all the money, time, brain power and energy spent on the James Webb Space Telescope (and its predecessor the Hubble Space Telescope) was wasted because there's nothing out there to observe... This is completely absurd. Oh wait! These pictures [4] are in Robert Lanza's brain! It proves telepathy! [5]
Chapter 4 LIGHTS AND ACTION!
An interlude of childhood experiences, natural curiosity, exploration of nature and luck that put Dr. Lanza on his life path. The only issue relevant to the subject matter in this chapter is the perception of reality by different organisms.
Chapter 5 WHERE IS THE UNIVERSE?
This chapter starts with pages discussing what the self is, or the nature of identity, along with what different philosophers and religions have said. Unfortunately it quickly falls into the trap of conflating reality with the perception of reality.
"nothing can be perceived that is not already interacting with our consciousness"
leads to
"the so-called external world must be correlative with consciousness"
which in turns leads to
"One doesn't exist without the other",
which degenerates into the absurdity that that the moon disappears if no one is looking at it. (page 35). After more detailed descriptions of the processes by which we see and form the concepts of objects in our brains he concludes that
"The two-world model is a myth".
The two worlds are the outside world and the representation of it in our consciousnesses, based on the inputs of our senses. Obviously this cannot be reconciled with the observations of science or our own experiences, so we need to discard everything we've been taught: language and its meaning and the thinking process itself.
"Consciousness, like aspects of quantum theory, involving entangled particles may exists outside of time altogether".
To support this view, not only time, but also space have to be made to exist only inside the mind. In later chapters, misusing and abusing Quantum Theory and Relativity, he attempts to prove that neither exists in the objective, external world. Finally, after some discussion of the processes of making decisions, with some experimental evidence thrown in, he concludes that
"control too, is largely an illusion" (page 38).
This has implications for free will and the perception of it. Various experiments have shown that internal subconscious activity can be detected before the subject is aware of making a decision. Instead of acknowledging that maybe this is how the brain works, he concludes that
"we can label all cognition as an amalgam of our experiential selves and whatever energy field may pervade the cosmos. To avoid such awkward phrasing, we'll allude to it by simply calling it awareness or consciousness."
So now we have consciousness not only within our brains but pervading the universe.
Chapter 6 BUBBLES IN TIME
Memories of childhood lead to speculation about the nature of subjective time and why things happen.
"Science's prevailing mechanistic mind-set"
that describes an essentially random universe cannot be true:
"Truly random events offer neither excitement nor creativity."
Again, the conflation of external objective reality and our interpretation (and reaction) to it. Describing emotional reactions to the beauty of nature:
"who in their right mind would say that it was all conjured by imbecilic billiard balls slamming each other by the laws of chance? No observant person would be able to utter such a thing, which is why it always strikes me as slightly amazing that any scientist can aver, with a straight face, that they stand there at the lectern - a conscious, functioning organism with trillions of perfectly functioning parts - the sole result of falling dice. Our least gesture affirms the magic of life's design."
So there you have it: Intelligent Design, re-packaged.
Chapter 7 WHEN TOMORROW COMES BEFORE YESTERDAY
"Biocentrism is the only humanly comprehensible explanation for how the world can be like that".
Mmm... A priori conclusions? Experimental results be damned?
"we will sift through the evidence of quantum theory as deliberately as [Sherlock] Holmes might without being thrown off the trail by the prejudices of three hundred years of science." (page 48)
Apparently conclusions come before experimentation and science has prejudices? If science is incomprehensible and full of prejudice, why use it at all? Obviously to give some credibility to yet more conflated ideas: the fact that time and space are not fixed at relativistic speeds is used to pretend that time and space as experienced by everyone does not exist. The atomic scale and the physical laws that apply there are conflated with the macro world. After pages of descriptions of particle entanglement experiments, the conclusion is that
"the entities we observe are floating in field - a field of mind, Biocentrism maintains - that is not limited by the external space-time Einstein theorized a century ago."
The proof of the existence of such a field is, of course, nowhere to be found.
"The experiments of Heisenberg, Bell, Gisin and Wineland fortunately call us back to experience itself, the immediacy of the here and now. Before matter can peep forth - as a pebble, a snowflake, or even a sub-atomic particle - it has to be observed by a living creature." (page 54)
WRONG! First of all, the observer effect has only been proven at elementary particle scale, not pebbles, snowflakes, etc... Second, no living creature is necessary, only that a photon interferes with the elementary particle, and then the photon might be detected (or not) by a living creature, such as a human, and most likely through a photo-multiplier tube. No living being that I'm aware of can detect a single photon, unaided by technology.
A few pages later he backtracks, saying that of course a train will arrive at the expected time and place.
On page 59, another conflation.
"Nothing is real"
based on the indeterminate nature of position or speed, which can only be determined (one or the other) after observation. But this applies only to sub-atomic particles and he also applies it to the macro world. So, the third principle of Biocentrism is based on the conflation of the laws that apply to the atomic scale (valid) and
"indeed all particles and objects"
which is utter nonsense. A chair then, when not looked at,
"at best exist[s] in an undetermined state of probability waves".
Chapter 8 THE MOST AMAZING EXPERIMENT
"Quantum theory has unfortunately become a catch-all phrase for trying to prove various kinds of New Age nonsense."
Let's use it instead to try to prove Intelligent Design (aka God) [1]. Using detailed descriptions of the 2-slit experiment and particle entanglement (on page 79) he uses interference with electron p causing the destruction of electron s's pattern as something to do with the consciousness of the observer but he conveniently ignores the accepted fact that both particles are entangled and thus a change to one reflects in the other.
The fourth principle of Biocentrism depends on the conflation of atomic scale and the laws that apply there and the human-scale world.
Chapter 9 GOLDILOCKS'S UNIVERSE
The classic argument for Intelligent Design. The universe is so wondrously complex and fine tuned that it couldn't exist without the master planner behind the curtain. Long list of physical constants that, if they varied a miniscule amount, would have prevented the universe as we know it from being formed.
On page 89, again the conflation of the atomic and macro scale. The example of preventing a nuclear bomb from exploding by observing all its atoms can obviously never be tested. The material is opaque and the resolution of the required observation would need an electron microscope and some way to penetrate the material (and x-rays don't have the required resolution), so the experiment is not possible. The only way to affect every atom in a bomb would be to hit each one with a particle or photon, again not possible given the nearby (very heavy) atoms. Again, this is not possible, so the thought experiment is useless. The only possible way to do this would be the Star Trek dampening field, but this is science-FICTION. Maybe the mind field would do? If this were possible, you would think the Defense-Industrial complex would have come up with a way to neutralize all nuclear weapons.
After describing an experiment where beryllium atoms were prevented from absorbing energy by using a pulsed laser to observe them, he concludes:
"apparently a function of the observation."
NO. A function of the laser pulses used to observe the state.
"quantum theory implies that consciousness must exist"
NO. It implies that, at the atomic scale, interference from particles/energy used to measure, collapse the wave function of the measured particle. Nothing more, nothing less.
Chapter 10 NO TIME TO LOSE
This book becomes more outlandish with each chapter. On page 91, the author states:
"observers are required to bring the universe into existence".
Really? so, humans were present at the birth of the universe billions of years ago? This denies evolution and might as well be called creationism.
Did the universe form retroactively 13.8 billions of years ago, which is required to explain the big bang and expansion of the universe? This seems to require violation of just about every law of physics. [2]
In 1991, Stephen Hawking wrote a paper called “Chronology Protection Conjecture,” in which he asked: If time travel is possible, why are we not inundated with tourists from the future? He has a point, doesn’t he?
This book: NOW: The Physics of Time (2016) by Richard Muller [3] explains why time travel is not possible. "Time is expanding because space is expanding".
Where there are no logical arguments left, the author resorts to ad hominem attacks against science (page 92). Really? Is that all he can come up with?
On page 96: conflation of time and the perception of time. Imagination (the future) is inside the mind. Memory (the past) is our perception of the past, also inside the mind.
If time only exists in the mind, what about these observations?
- 2d law of thermodynamics (entropy).
- Nuclear decay/half life of radioactive elements and thus carbon dating.
- Causality. Besides the purely physical explanations (conservation of energy, etc...) if time is not a real thing, and can flow in both directions (as determined by the mind of the thinker) you end up in chaos, not to mention that, as previously explained, many fundamental physical laws would be violated.
"We see only that for which we are looking" (page 100).
Although this is an observable feature of our human brains, it could better have been said "we only see what we expect to see" as the brain tends to ignore/not process what it doesn't understand and it absolutely has nothing to do with the reality of the existence of atoms and physical objects.
"Momentum (...) belongs to the inner world" (also page 100).
Really? Let's see: a mechanism is built to shoot a bullet at the back of your head, at a random time, independent of any person pulling the trigger, since you don't see the bullet, it doesn't have momentum and can't kill you. Dr. Lanza, MD, are you willing to test this theory experimentally?
On page 102, yet again, conflation of perception of time and physical time (relativistic or not).
"The demotion of time from an actual reality to a mere subjective experience, a fiction, or even social convention, is central to Biocentrism." (page 104)
Really? then why does everybody die? why do cells degrade? why do biological processes follow the second law of thermodynamics? The answer is that Biocentrism is nothing more than a provably incorrect theory.
Chapter 11 SPACE OUT
In this chapter evil apace must be cast out. Relativity proves that space varies with speed, so let's use it to make space unreal.
Any argument that contradicts our real-world experience that distance is fixed is fair game. On page 115 he says:
"And if we could move at 99.9999999 percent of light speed, which is perfectly allowable by the laws of physics, the living room would now be 1/22.361th the original size, or just a hundredth of an inch across".
Beyond casting doubt on our perceptions, I'm not sure what the purpose is. That distance doesn't really exist as we perceive it? That we could travel great distances in the blink of an eye? Of course he leaves out the energy required to reach relativistic speeds, even now beyond the capabilities of any space agency, and the fact that no living organism would survive the acceleration to reach almost the speed of light in the space of a living room.
"Biocentrism, of course, shows that space is a projection from inside our minds, where experience begins." (Page 117)
Again, conflation of perception of distance with actual distance. If real space is not real and only in my mind, why can't I teleport to Paris instantaneously? Relativistically, the amount of energy required to bend space/time would be enormous. Or a relativistic vehicle would take almost as much, And it would still not be instantaneous.
Chapter 12 THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN
Another personal interlude from the author's childhood. He went looking for a Nobel laureate at Harvard and MIT. With some luck and the power of name dropping, he got a job at MIT.
Chapter 13 WINDMILLS OF THE MIND
In this chapter, Dr. Lanza slams science for its inability to come up with answers to the big questions, such as:
- "the laws of nature themselves - just appeared for no reason one day."
- "spontaneous generation" of life.
- "the origin of the universe itself."
Since he doesn't have provable answers, he must cast doubt on the tools available and point out why they're not adequate. Logic has limits, language is not specific enough, not allowing for clear concepts to be formulated, even the brain has limitations that don't allow us to find solutions to these problems. The human mind is not equipped to understand the universe. The chapter finishes with:
"Biocentrism, like everything else, has its logical limits". (page 141)
So, it can't be proven logically, or with math or by experimentation. That leaves
"it's the best explanation we can come up with".
Where have we heard this before? It's the explanation of every religion: God did it.
Chapter 14 A FALL IN PARADISE
Another interlude from the past, where his best friend fell from a tree, was gravely injured and died. This led to a transcendental moment when he felt both in the present and the past, that
"every creature consists of multiple spheres of physical reality that pass through their own creations of space and time like ghosts through doors".
And then, based on the two-slit experiment, that
"Dennis was both alive and dead, outside of time."
The last paragraph says:
"Our current scientific world-view offers no hope or escape for those scared to death of dying. But Biocentrism, hints at an alternative. If time is an illusion, if reality is created by our own consciousness, can this consciousness ever truly be extinguished?"
Exactly what religion is supposed to do.
Chapter 15 BUILDING BLOCKS OF CREATION
Using an emotional story of a father needing an experimental treatment to cure his son's impending blindness as s springboard, Dr. Lanza describes how stem-cells ("the body's master cells") create "photo receptors, even miniature eye-balls". Then, on to brain cells. These "master cells ... make all kinds of nerve cells spontaneously, almost by default". And then he launches on the same old Intelligent Design argument: how can such complexity and beauty emerge?
"these nerve cells are the fundamental units of reality. They are the first thing nature seems to want most to create when left alone. Neurons - not atoms - lie as the bedrock and base of our observer-determined world."
And then the jump from perception to reality:
"The circuitry of these cells in the brain contains the logic of space and time."
The chapter finishes with a side trip to the pond at the university, where the author experienced a deep sense of communion with nature and oneness. And that experience is
"the most convincing evidence I should ever need."
Dr. Lanza, your research is incomplete. Similar results can be obtained by ingesting psychedelic drugs, as a result of mental illness or from dis-association caused by trauma.
Chapter 16 WHAT IS THIS PLACE
RELIGION, SCIENCE, AND BIOCENTRISM LOOK AT REALITY
More trashing of science for not having answers to the fundamental questions. The section: "Classic Science's Answers to Basic Questions" has a good summary:
How did the Big Bang happen? Unknown.
What was the Big Bang? Unknown.
What, if anything, existed before the Big Bang? Unknown.
What is the nature of dark energy, the dominant entity of the cosmos? Unknown.
What is the nature of dark matter, the second most prevalent entity? Unknown.
How did life arise? Unknown.
How did consciousness arise? Unknown.
What is the fate of the universe; for example, will it keep expanding? Seemingly yes.
Why are the constants the way they are? Unknown.
Why are there exactly four forces? Unknown.
Is life further experienced after one's body dies? Unknown.
Which book provides the best answers? There is no single book.
This is followed by sections on Western Religions (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) and Eastern Religions (Buddhism and Hinduism); and later by "Biocentrism's Take on the Cosmos". The first sentence is:
"There is no separate physical universe outside of life and consciousness. Nothing is real that is not perceived."
Followed by recapitulations of the previously described conflations that prove that:
"Space and time exist only as constructs of the mind, as tools of perception."
immediately contradicted with:
"Neither nature nor mind is unreal."
So, space and time, fundamental features of nature exist only in the mind, but yet they are real.
Finally, the seven principles of Biocentrism are enumerated. These are based on the flawed reasonings of the previous chapters, and the author seems to know this. On page 161:
'may or may not be so"
so after trying to prove via a whole book a nonsensical premise, he gives up. All he has to go on is:
"the insistence of many people in all cultures and throughout history of having had a "revelatory experience" that carried "no doubt" that All is One"
This can be explained by the common nature of the human brain. Since all humans have essentially the same human brain, doesn't it make sense that all would have the same experiences? There is recent research that psychedelic compounds, such as psilocybin (magic mushrooms) interfere with the parts of the brain that define the separateness and individuality, thus causing the "All is One" feeling. The quantum theory justifications are cherry-picked, selectively applied and unnecessary.
Chapter 17 SCI-FI GETS REAL
What is the point of this chapter? That humans can come up with different ideas based on the prevailing knowledge? That's exactly all this chapter implies.
Chapter 18 MYSTERY OF CONSCIOUSNESS
Like many other previous chapters, it slams science for not having solved the consciousness problem. As previously, the word "yet" is conspicuously absent. Instead of admitting that the problem of consciousness might eventually be solved, the authors assert that the only explanation is God/consciousness.
"Clearly, it is not solely atoms and proteins that hold the answer to the problem of consciousness." (Page 175)
Really? and you know this how exactly? It is much more likely that, when we understand the whole structure of those atoms, proteins, neurons and their connections, as well as the timing of the electrical impulses, the problem of consciousness will be understood. I guess Dr. Lanza hasn't heard of Emergent Phenomena.
"But if there were no observers, the cosmos wouldn't merely look like nothing, which is stating the obvious. No, more than that. It wouldn't exist in any way." (Page 178)
This seems to be the perception of an infant who has no object permanence [6]. Out of sight, out of mind. It's hard to believe that an obviously intelligent person, as evidenced in other parts of the book, can come up with such nonsense. Biocentrism is so full of itself. The universe doesn't exist unless it's perceived by us puny humans? So, humans are the most important part of the universe, since it can't exist without us? Utter BULLSHIT!
This chapter again conflates the perception of the world with the world as it exists without being observed. It also conflates the scales of the sub-atomic particle, where certain behaviors have been observed and proven, and the macro world, where those behaviors and rules are not applicable.
Try to do the double-slit experiment with golf balls. I predict there will NOT be a golf ball interence pattern.
"It is as correct to call the Moon empty space as to call it an object." (Page 182)
Tell that to Neil Armstrong and the other 11 people that have walked on it. Again, selective use of facts. While it is true that the radius of the atomic nucleus is much smaller than the diameter of the atom, the fields and forces that keep the atoms together is what gives matter substance. The energies needed to break atoms apart are quite large.
Chapter 19 DEATH AND ETERNITY
"This is the point at which we leave science for a bit and contemplate what Biocentrism suggests and allows, rather than what it can prove. The following is frankly speculative..."
This whole chapter attempts to show, by flawed deductions, with sci-fi references and anecdotal memories thrown in for good measure, that believing in Biocentrism is helpful to deal with the arrows that life throws at us. This, of course, is one of the main purposes of religion. At least religion, if it is being honest, does not pretend to use the logic of the scientific process to validate itself.
Chapter 20 WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
The final admission that Biocentrism is just an idea without any supporting evidence.
"Biocentrism is a scientific change in world-view that invites incorporation into existing areas of research."
So, more experiments required, since existing ones have failed to prove any of the claims proposed in this book. But it gets more outlandish: The 2 slit experiment
"- at the levels of tables and chairs". (Page 196)
Sorry, the transporter is a science-FICTION device from the Star Trek universe, created in the mind of Gene Roddenberry. Oh wait! From the MIND of the creator of Star Trek! This PROVES the whole premise of this book! NOT! Mr. Lanza is apparently unable to distinguish the creative process from reality. There is a name in the medical literature for this condition: Schizophrenia.
ADDENDUM
In 2016, the same authors wrote another book called
BEYOND BIOCENTRISM
Rethinking Time, Space, Consciousness, and the Illusion of Death
It is essentially the same book, pushing the same unsubstantiated theories using the same techniques of using well-known parts of Physics, theoretical and experimental, along with selective and flawed reasoning while ignoring glaring contradictions. The ultimate conclusion is: since time doesn't exist, we are immortal.
[1] Biocentrism appears to be just a re-branded "Intelligent design". (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligent_design) which in turn is "a form of creationism that lacks empirical support and offers no testable or tenable hypotheses, and is therefore not science."
[2] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/time-travel-history-science-james-gleick
[3] https://www.futurity.org/now-book-richard-muller-1252952-2/
[4] https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/multimedia/index.html https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasawebbtelescope/sets/72177720296737701/
[5] https://skepticalinquirer.org/2019/07/why-parapsychological-claims-cannot-be-true/