On density and temperature-dependent ground-state and continuum effects in the equation of state for stellar interiors -- A Comment on the paper by S. Arndt, W. Dappen and A. Nayfonov 1998, ApJ 498, 349

Misunderstandings have occurred regarding the conclusions of the paper by S. Arndt, W. Dappen and A. Nayfonov 1998, ApJ 498, 349. At occasions, its results were interpreted as if it had shown basic flaws in the general theory of dynamical screening. The aim of this comment is to emphasize in which connection the conclusions of the paper have to be understood in order to avoid misinterpretations.Comment: Astrophysical Journal (to appear 1 May 1999), 5 page

Lorentz Violation and Short-Baseline Neutrino Experiments

A general discussion is given of signals for broken Lorentz symmetry in short-baseline neutrino experiments. Among the effects that Lorentz violation can introduce are a dependence on energy differing from that of the usual massive-neutrino solution and a dependence on the direction of neutrino propagation. Using the results of the LSND experiment, explicit analysis of the effects of broken Lorentz symmetry yields a nonzero value (3+/-1) x 10^{-19} GeV for a combination of coefficients for Lorentz violation. This lies in the range expected for effects originating from the Planck scale in an underlying unified theory.Comment: 4 pages REVTe

Is the Mind/Soul a Platonic Akashic Tachyonic Holographic Quantum Field?

I speculate that the mind/soul may be an information field as perhaps envisioned by Plato-what I call the Platonic/Akashic/Tachyonic/Holographic quantum field (PATH-QF)-possibly what the ancients called the Akashic record, interacting with "real" matter fields. Though no material objects manifesting from appropriate quantum fields (those that generate real finite rest masses > 0) can travel at or faster than the speed of light, I speculate that the putative mind/soul exists as a PATH that interacts/creates with such slower-than-light-speed "real" matter through the intermediary of imaginal imaginary-mass objects-tachyons. It is the interaction between the PATH and matter fields that leads to the physical world and to the subjective experience we know as mind/life force

Ontology, Epistemology, Consciousness; And Closed, Timelike Curves

How should we think about subjective states vs. objective states? Is it a question of the meaning associated with a state? Recent work on this question arose in consideration of closed timelike curves (CTCs) and their possible role in quantum computers. The issue of ontic and epistemic states is particularly important when considering CTCs because, as one may argue, the interpretation of quantum states as either ontic or epistemic will naturally lead to different assumptions about how quantum systems behave in the presence of CTCs. For example, David Deutsch studied various time travel scenarios in a classical model and then in a quantum model motivated by a strictly ontic interpretation of quantum states. While in the classical model, CTCs could produce paradoxes, however Deutsch argued that no paradoxes can occur in his parallel universes (modified Everett interpretation) quantum treatment. Although all paradoxes are resolved in this way, the resulting theory is not standard quantum theory, but a new nonlinear theory. Many implications can arise using Deutsch's model and I shall discuss some of them in particular. These assumptions are particularly unconventional in part because they require that mixed quantum states are ontic. Pure quantum states can be interpreted as ontic, however most interpretations view mixed states as epistemic, i.e., reflecting an observer's lack of knowledge. I shall here consider an alternative proposal-pure quantum states, represented by density matrices containing off-diagonal elements, are possibly epistemic (since we never actually see them) while mixed quantum states arising in CTCs are always ontic representing the action of consciousness in observers (we do see them). Paradoxically my argument is based on the well-known experiences of gaining knowledge in classical physics; couching this in quantum physics terms, classical mixed states (represented by diagonal density matrices in quantum physics) are just what arise when an "observation" is said to occur resulting in a so-called reduction of the quantum wave function and the appearance of a classical world. In brief, Deutsch's CTC nonlinear post quantum physics model may represent the action of a conscious mind

The Physics of Dream Consciousness: Is the Lucid Dream a Parallel Universe?

I realize that we have only about twenty minutes to be together so I'm not going to overwhelm you with the number of years of research that I've been doing on the nature of consciousness itself and in particular the connection between physics and consciousness. I want to give you the bottom line first so you know where I'm coming from. I would like to suggest that all cognitive experience can be related to a model which has currently been circulating in psychological research called the Holographic Model, and I would like to strongly suggest that the mental hologram referred to is constructed in the brain and nervous system via a mechanism of quantum wave interference