Tag Archives: Federico Faggin

We are divine

17 Apr

“We are divine, and we must live not by the
survival of the fittest, but in a way that supports everyone and everything on
this planet” Bruce H. Lipton

The time has come to use our powerful technologies for the good of all,
rather than for the delusional good of the self-proclaimed fittest. The idea of
separation, which finds its expression in the reductionism of classical
physics, must be replaced by the experience of union and inclusion already
evident in the holism of life. “There is not a single isolated fragment in all
of nature, each fragment is part of a harmonious and complete unity” (John
Muir). Only by recognizing this crucial interdependence can humanity go
beyond the repetition of the same dysfunctional patterns that have caused so
much unnecessary suffering to our species and to the ecosystem.
Many sages throughout history have suggested that we are beings of
light that will not die with the death of the body, because we are here to
learn and grow. I think we are here to learn to collectively create new
worlds in which to operate at a much higher level of cooperation, creativity,
and fulfillment than we now can at this early stage of our spiritual
evolution. The possibility of experiencing our true nature is already
supported by the enlightened personal experiences of millions of people
around the globe, and by countless “anecdotal” facts and events that science
hesitates to investigate. If we open ourselves to this potential that is
dormant in us and ask our greater self to show the way, we may soon be
able to experience an unsuspected unity in our lives, the early signs of
humanity’s awakening to its true power and purpose
.

Only when we truly comprehend that we are responsible for our
experiences and that the choice is ours alone, can we begin to truly know
ourselves and the world.
To know ourselves more and more, we need a new empathic science
that can convert scientific knowledge into deep lived knowing and from it
generate new scientific knowledge. Similarly, we need a new rational
spirituality that can convert lived knowing into new scientific knowledge
and from it generate new lived knowing. These two disciplines can then
intertwine in endless and mutual crescendo.
This is the essence of the Creative Principle of One. Within this vision,
empathic science and rational spirituality, integrating and interweaving, will
evermore increase our loving, joyful, and fulfilling union with the Whole.

I think that the positive forces that will create our future will not be the
forces and the laws of matter, but those of conscious cooperation,
comprehension, and love for others that all beings in existence must sooner
or later manifest because these values are the essence of our deepest nature.
I also think that the most effective way to achieve union is through a
process of collective and cooperative creation of a just, empathic, and
loving society through right and courageous actions informed by the heart
and by the intuitive and rational mind. Then our experience and knowing
will grow in our hearts and they will guide our individual actions through
an ever-higher level of consciousness.

copyright: Federico Faggin 2023 Irreducible: Consciousness, Life, Computers and Human Nature

The Awakening – Federico Faggin

20 Jan

IRREDUCIBLE- 2024 John Hunt Publishing

Top physicist and inventor of the microprocessor & touch screen, Federico Faggin, for an intriguing conversation into the nature of reality. Federico once had a materialistic scientific perspective on consciousness and reality until one day a spontaneous spiritual awakening changed his perspective forever. In this episode he shares that very experience and how it has shaped his current view on reality. With this deeper knowing, he spent decades researching reality, today he shares his findings. He reveals why computers can never be conscious, who we are our essence, what carries on after death, and our unbreakable connection to something larger than ourselves. He also discusses the very real force of love that underlies all things, the secret to spiritual growth, and why humans can never be replaced by artificial intelligence.

Love is the feeling out of which all other feelings emerge.

It’s the force that motivates you to find out who you are.

– Federico Faggin

The Hard Problem of Consciousness

David Chalmers formulated the “hard problem” of consciousness as the question of how and why neural activity in the brain gives rise to subjective experiences (qualia). Traditional science considers consciousness an emergent property of brain complexity, but Faggin offers a radically different perspective:

  1. Consciousness is fundamental and primary: it is not a byproduct of the brain but exists independently of matter.
  2. The material world is an expression of consciousness: rather than consciousness emerging from matter, matter itself is shaped by consciousness.
  3. The Self is irreducible and unified: each individual is a unique manifestation of a universal consciousness.
  4. Information alone cannot explain consciousness: unlike computers and AI, which process information but lack subjectivity and intentionality, consciousness involves direct experience.

Faggin proposes a reinterpretation of quantum mechanics based on the primacy of consciousness. He builds upon key quantum phenomena that challenge materialist views and integrates them into his metaphysical framework.

Federico Faggin’s Quantum Metaphysics

One of the most enigmatic and debated aspects of quantum mechanics is the collapse of the wavefunction. In the standard interpretation of quantum mechanics, physical systems exist in a superposition of multiple states until they are observed. This raises the profound question: what causes the collapse of possibilities into a single reality? 

Federico Faggin’s metaphysical interpretation suggests that consciousness itself plays an active role in this process. Rather than being a passive observer of an already-determined reality, consciousness participates in shaping what is actualized. In this view, observation is not merely an act of measurement but an act of creation, where consciousness determines the outcome of quantum potentialities. 

This perspective aligns with interpretations of quantum mechanics that emphasize the role of the observer, such as the von Neumann–Wigner interpretation, but extends further by positing consciousness as the foundational element of reality rather than an emergent property of the brain.

This framework naturally leads to the idea that the universe is fundamentally interconnected, a notion strongly supported by the phenomenon of quantum entanglement. When two particles become entangled, their states remain correlated regardless of the distance between them, even across vast cosmic scales. The speed at which this correlation manifests exceeds the limits of classical physics, defying the constraints of locality. 

If consciousness is indeed fundamental, then this interconnectedness might not be merely a physical anomaly but a reflection of a deeper unity within reality itself. The separation between objects, beings, and events could perhaps appears from our limited perception, while at the most fundamental level, all things are interwoven within a single, complex and conscious reality. This evokes the concept of Wholeness which is central to our research in the Science & Philosophy Institute.

However, contrasting with our approach, Faggin suggest that matter itself is not independent of consciousness but rather a manifestation of it. Classical physics treats matter as the fundamental substrate of reality, governed by deterministic laws. However, quantum mechanics reveals a world in which particles do not have fixed properties until they are measured, existing instead as a field of probabilities. 

Faggin argues that these probabilities are not mere abstract mathematical constructs but expressions of consciousness interacting with the physical world. In this sense, what we perceive as “matter” is not an independent entity but rather the structured unfolding of consciousness into form. As such, the laws of physics do not emerge from an abstract mathematical framework but from an intrinsic intelligence embedded within reality itself.

This leads to a redefinition of information at the quantum level. In classical computation and physics, information is treated as a purely quantitative measure, devoid of intrinsic meaning. However, if consciousness is primary, then quantum information is not just numerical data—it is qualitative and experiential. 

What Faggin proposes is not merely an extension of quantum theory but a profound rethinking of reality itself, where consciousness and matter are inseparably intertwined, and the universe is understood as a living, conscious whole.

A new Model of Reality: Internal and External Reality

Faggin introduces a dual model of reality, which he calls “Internal Reality” and “External Reality”:

  • External Reality (Material World): the world described by classical and quantum physics, governed by objective laws but devoid of subjectivity.
  • Internal Reality (Consciousness): the domain of subjective experience, intuition, and creativity.

According to Faggin, consciousness is not a byproduct of the brain but the fundamental essence from which the material universe emerges. Internal Reality shapes and informs External Reality.

If consciousness is fundamental and the universe is its manifestation, several profound implications arise:

  • Science must integrate subjectivity: the purely objective study of reality is insufficient and a new paradigm is needed that acknowledges the active role of consciousness.
  • Computers will never achieve consciousness: while AI can simulate intelligence, it will never possess true awareness, or a subjective experience deeply interconnected to its larger context.
  • Quantum mechanics must be reinterpreted: the observer’s role is not just epistemological (as in the Copenhagen interpretation) but ontological.
  • Life has an inherent purpose: if consciousness is primary, then the universe is not random or mechanical but follows an evolution guided by conscious purpose.

Federico Faggin’s theory offers a revolutionary perspective on consciousness and reality, proposing that consciousness is the fundamental essence of existence, while matter is merely one of its expressions. His theory provides a possible answer to the hard problem of consciousness and suggests a new interpretative framework for quantum mechanics, moving beyond reductionist materialism toward a metaphysical vision where each individual is a unique manifestation of the universal primeval consciousness.

Irreducible

8 Jan

Union Is in the Heart

Follow the advice of your heart, because no one will be more faithful to you than him. —Book of Sirach, 37.13

 I think that the positive forces that will create our future will not be the forces and the laws of matter, but those of conscious cooperation, comprehension, and love for others that all beings in existence must sooner or later manifest because these values are the essence of our deepest nature.

I also think that the most effective way to achieve union is through a process of collective and cooperative creation of a just, empathic, and loving society through right and courageous actions informed by the heart and by the intuitive and rational mind. Then our experience and knowing will grow in our hearts and they will guide our individual actions through an ever-higher level of consciousness.

Unfortunately, today there is the real danger of letting ourselves be seduced by the spreading culture of digital ontology and digital consumerism that replaces true and profound relationships with virtual and superficial ones, thus halting, if not reversing, our spiritual development.

Social networks designed to bombard people with suggestive messages, often personalized to reinforce personal biases or based on false information or on presumed conspiratorial theories, generate groups that can become alienated from reality in self-isolating worlds. Nikola Tesla said that “progress must serve to improve the human race; if not, it is only a perversion.”

Technology must be used to help us discover our true nature, not to further imprison us in meaningless virtual worlds designed to enrich the richest. We have come to the point where we can truly unite as humans no matter where we were born, or stay divided in warring factions with ever increasing destructive technology on our side. Only when we truly comprehend that we are responsible for our experiences and that the choice is ours alone, can we begin to truly know ourselves and the world.

To know ourselves more and more, we need a new empathic science that can convert scientific knowledge into deep lived knowing and from it generate new scientific knowledge. Similarly, we need a new rational spirituality that can convert lived knowing into new scientific knowledge and from it generate new lived knowing. These two disciplines can then intertwine in endless and mutual crescendo.

This is the essence of the Creative Principle of One. Within this vision, empathic science and rational spirituality, integrating and interweaving, will evermore increase our loving, joyful, and fulfilling union with the Whole.

Federico Faggin