A Categorical Framework for Quantum Theory

Underlying any theory of physics is a layer of conceptual frames. They connect the mathematical structures used in theoretical models with physical phenomena, but they also constitute our fundamental assumptions about reality. Many of the discrepancies between quantum physics and classical physics (including Maxwell's electrodynamics and relativity) can be traced back to these categorical foundations. We argue that classical physics corresponds to the factual aspects of reality and requires a categorical framework which consists of four interdependent components: boolean logic, the linear-sequential notion of time, the principle of sufficient reason, and the dichotomy between observer and observed. None of these can be dropped without affecting the others. However, in quantum theory the reduction postulate also addresses the "status nascendi" of facts, i.e., their coming into being. Therefore, quantum phyics requires a different conceptual framework which will be elaborated in this article. It is shown that many of its components are already present in the standard formalisms of quantum physics, but in most cases they are highlighted not so much from a conceptual perspective but more from their mathematical structures. The categorical frame underlying quantum physics includes a profoundly different notion of time which encompasses a crucial role for the present.Comment: 35 pages, 1 figur

The scene superiority effect: object recognition in the context of natural scenes

Four experiments investigate the effect of background scene semantics on object recognition. Although past research has found that semantically consistent scene backgrounds can facilitate recognition of a target object, these claims have been challenged as the result of post-perceptual response bias rather than the perceptual processes of object recognition itself. The current study takes advantage of a paradigm from linguistic processing known as the Word Superiority Effect. Humans can better discriminate letters (e.g., D vs. K) in the context of a word (WORD vs. WORK) than in a non-word context (e.g., WROD vs. WROK) even when the context is non-predictive of the target identity. We apply this paradigm to objects in natural scenes, having subjects discriminate between objects in the context of scenes. Because the target objects were equally semantically consistent with any given scene and could appear in either semantically consistent or inconsistent contexts with equal probability, response bias could not lead to an apparent improvement in object recognition. The current study found a benefit to object recognition from semantically consistent backgrounds, and the effect appeared to be modulated by awareness of background scene semantics

How do changes in speed affect the perception of duration?

Six experiments investigated how changes in stimulus speed influence subjective duration. Participants saw rotating or translating shapes in three conditions: constant speed, accelerating motion, and decelerating motion. The distance moved and average speed were the same in all three conditions. In temporal judgment tasks, the constant-speed objects seemed to last longer than the decelerating objects, which in turn seemed to last longer than the accelerating stimuli. In temporal reproduction tasks, the difference between accelerating and decelerating stimuli disappeared; furthermore, watching an accelerating shape lengthened the apparent duration of the subsequent (static) display. These results (a) suggest that temporal judgment and reproduction can dissociate for moving stimuli because the stimulus influences the apparent duration of the subsequent interval, and (b) constrain theories of time perception, including those which emphasize memory storage, those which emphasize the existence of a pacemaker-accumulator timing system, and those which emphasize the division of attention between temporal and non-temporal information processing

Recent Conceptual Consequences of Loop Quantum Gravity. Part I: Foundational Aspects

Conceptual consequences of recent results in loop quantum gravity are collected and discussed here in view of their implications for a modern philosophy of science which is mainly understood as one that totalizes scientific insight so as to eventually achieve a consistent model of what may be called fundamental heuristics on an onto-epistemic background which is part of recently proposed transcendental materialism. This enterprise is being understood as a serious attempt of answering recent appeals to philosophy so as to provide a conceptual foundation for what is going on in modern physics, and of bridging the obvious gap between physics and philosophy. This present first part of the paper deals with foundational aspects of this enterprise, a second part will deal with its holistic aspects.Comment: 25 page

Chorusing, synchrony, and the evolutionary functions of rhythm

A central goal of biomusicology is to understand the biological basis of human musicality. One approach to this problem has been to compare core components of human musicality (relative pitch perception, entrainment, etc.) with similar capacities in other animal species. Here we extend and clarify this comparative approach with respect to rhythm. First, whereas most comparisons between human music and animal acoustic behavior have focused on spectral properties (melody and harmony), we argue for the central importance of temporal properties, and propose that this domain is ripe for further comparative research. Second, whereas most rhythm research in non-human animals has examined animal timing in isolation, we consider how chorusing dynamics can shape individual timing, as in human music and dance, arguing that group behavior is key to understanding the adaptive functions of rhythm. To illustrate the interdependence between individual and chorusing dynamics, we present a computational model of chorusing agents relating individual call timing with synchronous group behavior. Third, we distinguish and clarify mechanistic and functional explanations of rhythmic phenomena, often conflated in the literature, arguing that this distinction is key for understanding the evolution of musicality. Fourth, we expand biomusicological discussions beyond the species typically considered, providing an overview of chorusing and rhythmic behavior across a broad range of taxa (orthopterans, fireflies, frogs, birds, and primates). Finally, we propose an “Evolving Signal Timing” hypothesis, suggesting that similarities between timing abilities in biological species will be based on comparable chorusing behaviors. We conclude that the comparative study of chorusing species can provide important insights into the adaptive function(s) of rhythmic behavior in our “proto-musical” primate ancestors, and thus inform our understanding of the biology and evolution of rhythm in human music and language

Consciousness operates beyond the timescale for discerning time intervals: implications for Q-mind theories and analysis of quantum decoherence in brain

This paper presents in details how the subjective time is constructed by the brain cortex via reading packets of information called "time labels", produced by the right basal ganglia that act as brain timekeeper. Psychophysiological experiments have measured the subjective "time quanta" to be 40 ms and show that consciousness operates beyond that scale - an important result having profound implications for the Q-mind theory. Although in most current mainstream biophysics research on cognitive processes, the brain is modelled as a neural network obeying classical physics, Penrose (1989, 1997) and others have argued that quantum mechanics may play an essential role, and that successful brain simulations can only be performed with a quantum computer. Tegmark (2000) showed that make-or-break issue for the quantum models of mind is whether the relevant degrees of freedom of the brain can be sufficiently isolated to retain their quantum coherence and tried to settle the issue with detailed calculations of the relevant decoherence rates. He concluded that the mind is classical rather than quantum system, however his reasoning is based on biological inconsistency. Here we present detailed exposition of molecular neurobiology and define the dynamical timescale of cognitive processes linked to consciousness to be 10-15 ps showing that macroscopic quantum coherent phenomena in brain are not ruled out, and even may provide insight in understanding life, information and consciousness

The Old and the Stubborn? Firm Characteristics and Relocation in the Netherlands

This study gives some insight into the relationships between the spatial environment, firm characteristics and long term existence of firms in the Netherlands. A logit model is employed to investigate the locational difference of firms, considering firm characteristics such as age, size, region and network. The main findings are that (long-term) continuation of the location and firm size are positively associated with long-term existence of firms