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| Photo by Nick Russill, 2005 |
Quantum Probabilities and the Future
“If we attempt to
attribute an objective meaning to the quantum state of a single system, curious
paradoxes appear: quantum effects mimic not only instantaneous
action-at-a-distance, but also…influence…future actions on past events, even
after these events have been irrevocably recorded.” 123 – Asher Peres (1934-2005), quantum physicist.
By this logic, the future can impact the past, which means
that just by writing this essay I’m affecting it. Seems strange, doesn’t? But
this is not an unheard of theory today. We’re used to thinking of the past influencing
the future, usually in a linear fashion. But with the increasingly widespread
and popular appeal of quantum physics, and the growing interest in how
consciousness affects reality, we begin to consider that Time is not linear and,
in fact, may not exist at all.
This has fascinating implications for the origins of our
ideas. They might come from the future, or the past, or from the collective
unconscious of humanity as described by Carl Jung (1875-1961). Of course, these
are only some common theories, others include: past lives, parallel reality bleedthroughs,
extraterrestrial intervention, extra-dimensional influences, and of course,
inspiration by a supreme deity.
What does all this have to do with science fiction?
Science Fiction encourages thoughtful expansion. It
speculates on what might be, and in a surprising number of cases, predicts with
fair accuracy what’s to come. It’s been said that this is simple chance, merely
an exercise in speculative potentials.
But if we take quantum mechanics into account, an author’s ideas could
come from anywhere, or anywhen.
