Quantum Model Uses Attention Thresholds to Explain Consciousness
Non-Hermitian equations show conscious access requires surpassing dual thresholds.
A new paper from Vasily Lubashevskiy and Ihor Lubashevsky introduces a mathematical model that bridges sensory processing and conscious access using concepts from quantum mechanics. The model is built on a non-Hermitian, non-normal Hamiltonian within a nonlinear Schrödinger-type equation in imaginary time. It treats high-level stimulus representations as a cloud function in a Hilbert space over a perceptual state space, combining holistic mental imagery with neural implementation. A key innovation is the inclusion of a Lotka-Volterra-type nonlinear term that preserves norm and enables spatially nonlocal interactions.
The Hermitian and anti-Hermitian parts of the Hamiltonian generate complementary dynamics: recognition via dissipative localization at minima of the Global Neuronal Workspace landscape, and information broadcasting via spatial spreading. Conscious access occurs only when both the landscape depth and top-down attention exceed specific threshold values, leading to the emergence of a bound state. The resulting dynamics reproduces the full subliminal–preconscious–conscious hierarchy, offering a unified dynamical description of how sensory input, attention, and conscious experience interact.
- Uses a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian with a Lotka-Volterra term to preserve norm and enable nonlocal interactions.
- Conscious access emerges as a bound state when both the GNW landscape depth and top-down attention exceed threshold values.
- Dynamics reproduce three tiers of processing: subliminal, preconscious, and conscious within a single mathematical framework.
Why It Matters
Provides a testable mathematical formalism linking neural activity to subjective conscious experience.