Narrow Results

I report the results from the first comparison of the genuine one-way speed of light in two directions relative to an inertially moving observer. An anisotropy that is first order in v/c is detected. The implications of the result and its relation to clock comparison experiments are discussed.

After a brief review of some results pertaining to the equivalence principle in the context of gravity and quantum mechanics, I discuss the important relation between the equivalence principle and the matter filled universe. I show that the universality of free fall is surprisingly robust in this context even if the gravitational constant is material dependent.

The nature of consciousness, the mechanism by which it occurs in the brain, and its ultimate place in the universe are unknown. We proposed in the mid 1990's that consciousness depends on biologically “orchestrated” coherent quantum processes in collections of microtubules within brain neurons, that these quantum processes correlate with, and regulate, neuronal synaptic and membrane activity, and that the continuous Schrödinger evolution of each such process terminates in accordance with the specific Diósi-Penrose (DP) scheme of “objective reduction” (“OR”) of the quantum state. This orchestrated OR activity (“Orch OR”) is taken to result in moments of conscious awareness and/or choice. The DP form of OR is related to the fundamentals of quantum mechanics and space-time geometry, so Orch OR suggests that there is a connection between the brain's biomolecular processes and the basic structure of the universe. Here we review Orch OR in light of criticisms and developments in quantum biology, neuroscience, physics and cosmology. We also introduce novel suggestions of (1) beat frequencies of faster Orch OR microtubule dynamics (e.g. megahertz) as a possible source of the observed electroencephalographic ("EEG") correlates of consciousness and (2) that OR played a key role in life's evolution. We conclude that consciousness plays an intrinsic role in the universe.

Starting from the simple premises of one size of fundamental building block, two types of energy and only three dimensions, it is shown that there can be no multiverses outside our universe, that some black holes are observable failed inflation events within our universe and that there can be only one underlying set of the laws of physics. These laws will be the same everywhere and fail nowhere. Composites formed from the building blocks during different inflation events can produce different sizes of fermions, nucleons and atoms, but a type of universe with symmetries similar to ours is the inevitable outcome of a successful inflation event. The building blocks provide the base for matter, anti-matter and dark matter in the same composite forms and show how the existence or otherwise of dark energy can be observed. Also explained are why only positive masses are observed, why some particle configurations and orbits are stable and what the terms ‘energy’ and ‘inertia’ really describe.