The Physics of Reality : Space, Time, Matter, Cosmos - Proceedings of the 8th Symposium Honoring Mathematical Physicist Jean-Pierre Vigier

553 Pages·2013·18.403 MB·English

by  Richard L Amoroso, Louis H Kauffman, Peter Rowlands, Richard L Amoroso, Louis H Kauffman, Peter Rowlands

THE PHYSICS REALITY
OF
Space, Time, Matter, Cosmos
8794_9789814504775_tp.indd 1 7/8/13 2:17 PM
TThhiiss ppaaggee iinntteennttiioonnaallllyy lleefftt bbllaannkk
THE PHYSICS REALITY
OF
Space, Time, Matter, Cosmos
Proceedings of the 8th Symposium Honoring Mathematical Physicist Jean-Pierre Vigier
Covent Garden, London, UK, 15–18 August 2012
Editors
Richard L. Amoroso
(Noetic Advanced Studies Institute, USA)
Louis H. Kauffman
(University of Illinois at Chicago, USA)
Peter Rowlands
(University of Liverpool, UK)
World Scientific
NEW JERSEY • LONDON • SINGAPORE • BEIJING • SHANGHAI • HONG KONG • TAIPEI • CHENNAI
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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
THE PHYSICS OF REALITY
Space, Time, Matter, Cosmos
Proceedings of the 8th Symposium Honoring Mathematical Physicist Jean-Pierre Vigier
Copyright © 2013 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
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ISBN 978-981-4504-77-5
Printed in Singapore
Jean-Pierre Vigier

L’hérétique de la physique!
TThhiiss ppaaggee iinntteennttiioonnaallllyy lleefftt bbllaannkk
vii

Foreword
Biographical Reflections on an ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’

I fully agree with you about the significance and educational value of methodology as well as history and philosophy of science. So
many people today—and even professional scientists—seem to me like somebody who has seen thousands of trees but has never seen a
forest. A knowledge of the historic and philosophical background gives that kind of independence from prejudices of his generation
from which most scientists are suffering. This independence created by philosophical insight is—in my opinion—the mark of
distinction between a mere artisan or specialist and a real seeker after truth [1].—Einstein

How does it happen that a properly endowed natural scientist comes to concern himself with epistemology? Is there no more valuable
work in his specialty? I hear many of my colleagues saying, and I sense it from many more, that they feel this way. I cannot share this
sentiment.... Concepts that have proven useful in ordering things easily achieve such an authority over us that we forget their earthly
origins and accept them as unalterable givens. Thus they come to be stamped as ‘necessities of thought,’ ‘a priori givens.’ The path of
scientific advance is often made impassable for a long time through such errors. For that reason, it is by no means an idle game if we
become practiced in analyzing the long-commonplace concepts and exhibiting those circumstances upon which their justification and
usefulness depend, how they have grown up, individually, out of the givens of experience. By this means, their all-too-great authority
will be broken [2].—Einstein

A conference proceedings provides an opportunity to inclined to believe it. Galileo is credited with
explore new ideas, accommodated by a less stringent instituting the modern age of empiricism at that time.
review process, and, supposedly, a setting with But now, empiricism has also become troubled. Some
colleagues in an optimally tolerant frame of mind, as experiments are said to require an accelerator the size
an aid in the dissemination of those new theoretical or of the Universe or a computation that takes the age of
empirical ideas that are, perhaps, still colored as a little the Universe to complete. Most pertinently, a Nobel
Prize was given for the discovery of the Big Bang
‘outside the box.’ I mention this umbrella although it is
cosmology. Critics said this award was given 20 years
generally known, because in addition to the usual
too early. Hubble discovered redshift, not a Doppler
battery of interesting forefront theories and research
expansion of the Universe. The issue here is not bad
reports, a surprising seminal foray into a new form of
experimental data, but erroneous or biased
research method, possibly completing the tools of
interpretation of that data as a ‘proof’ of the Big Bang.
epistemology, occurred in this particular Vigier
The ancient Greek philosopher Plato said, ‘no
symposium. I feel some discussions on this matter is
matter how great one's intelligence is, or how vast the
appropriate in the Vigier tradition, as Vigier himself
breadth of one's wisdom is, noetic insight is beyond the
was branded L’hérétique de la physique!
self; it is transcendent—coming from the cosmos.’
The last great age of discovery happened about 100
Transcendence is the third and final tool completing
years ago with the advent of the quantum theory. It is
human epistemology. It has been shown that
this editor’s opinion that the next age is immanent and
transcendence can be used as a tool in scientific theory
that this age of discovery will also bring us from the
formation [3]. This is not something to be taken
current ‘modern age’ to a new age of mind or
consciousness, additionally completing the tools of without the usual scientific insistence on rigor. The
human epistemology—which began in the dark ages of usual entry ticket to the profession of science is a PhD,
myth and superstition, then entered the age of reason which takes 8 to 10 years of university study with often
and logic until logic failed, for example, in terms of another two years in post-doc research. The utility of
demonstrating whether a heavier object falls faster transcendence does not come automatically to the
under the influence of a gravitational field. If one were natural man and, thus, seems to require a minimum of
to read the ancient texts as to why a heavier object about five years of intensive study in a ‘spiritual’
should fall faster, the logic is so appealing and elegant discipline—a semblance of the effort required to
that even knowing it to be otherwise today, one is achieve entry-level virtuosity as a violinist or pianist,
viii The Physics of Reality

for example. Regarding the philosophy of physics, merit throughout history. When we finished, I
centuries ago, the study of causality and the commented, ‘I thought you weren’t interested in
fundamental nature of space, time, matter or the consciousness/metaphysics.’ He said unequivocally,
Universe (cosmology) were part of metaphysics. Until ‘that doesn’t mean I don’t know about it….’
On a related note, I had told Jean-Pierre that I was a
recently, it was said, ‘first comes speculation, then
High Priest in the LDS (Mormon) church. As is the
speculation squared, then cosmology.’ Now,
case in much of Europe and probably more so in
cosmology is a hot arena of research.
I will repeat this statement once more later on in France, Vigier typically informed me he had little
interest in organized religion. Jean-Pierre told me he
this foreword: Before Einstein came along, relativity
grew up as a Calvinist, which according to Vigier was
was considered metaphysical and outside the domain
a sect that believed God put dinosaur bones in the
of the natural science. Man is a spiritual being. We
ground to trick mankind into believing that the Earth
anticipate with the immanent discovery of the mind (the
was older than 7,000 years as literal biblical
basis of an observer) [3–5] that transcendence is
interpretation suggests. He mentioned his visit to the
immanently reaching the end of its classification as
Natural History Museum at five years old and that, at
metaphysics, as a form of ‘empirical metaphysics’ will
the next Sunday school, he exclaimed loudly, ‘I saw
arise.
the bones. I saw the bones.’ Apparently, he made such
The BCS-V8 symposium is assuredly the first in
a disturbance that the school authorities or his parents
history to utilize transcendence as part of an
kept him from attending Calvinism from then on, …,
international physics symposium, making this volume a
and he smiled broadly. I loved that the child was still
truly Galilean- or Copernican-class document! With
very much alive in Vigier.
this introduction regarding this matter, I will first set
Three or four days after Jean-Pierre passed away on
the stage by relating to you an unusual incident
May 4, 2004, as a result of hitting his head on a brass
regarding Jean-Pierre Vigier’s past because, although
cornice at his bank in Paris the year before, I was house
the incident itself is transcendent, it elucidates the
sitting for some friends in the Oakland hills, CA. I had
context for describing the transcendent path to the new
dropped my friends off at the airport by 6 AM. I had
physics that follows eight years later and is included as
brought tons of work, but as I often do on the first day
a seminal part of the development of a chapter in this
in that environment, I turned on the Sci-Fi channel and
proceedings [6–8].
watched it, junk or not, continuously until 10 PM that
I consider myself Vigier’s final student and
night, when I finally turned it off in disgust at myself
colleague; during the last decade of his life, I went to
for wasting a precious day. I was sitting on a couch in
Pierre et Marie Curie Universite in Paris to collaborate
their idyllic family room, where often I could see deer
with him two to six times a year. Perhaps, because he
amble through the canopy of fir trees. I closed my eyes
was older or, perhaps, because he was indelibly
and meditatively queried, ‘should I go to bed, should I
cemented in his role as L’hérétique de la science, not
turn the TV back on, or should I finally start working?’
so many ‘bothered’ him; but the large box of papers At that moment, I had a vision that lasted no longer
and books he received weekly from all over the world than it takes to say, ‘He will help you.’ The voice was
suggested otherwise. Vigier was a powerful soul; he clear but the faces were dim and appeared smaller than
reminded me of a blast furnace: his light was so bright. the normal size. I immediately recognized Vigier. The
Even in his eighties, most scientists half his age did not speaker was one Steve White, both a physicist at
seem to have half his intellectual strength and dynamic Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and my
erudition. I had mentioned to Vigier that a main former stake president (regional LDS leader). I only
interest of mine was consciousness or the role of the recognized him because of the unique way he jerked
observer in the physical science. He emphatically told his head—which I will explain later—as he had done
me he had absolutely no interest in the subject. About a when I visited him on his death bed in the hospital
year later, I brought a copy of my first book on the some years earlier.
subject to show him [9], not entirely because it was a I was quite surprised, as one might imagine, at this
book on the mind–body problem, but because it was an unusual occurrence. I knew with some assurance that
attempt to show him that I was actually doing Vigier knew no other Mormons besides me and that, in
something of substance, as he had made the comment France, there were very few LDS people or religious
to me once ‘that it was not necessarily easy to tell if a people at all for that matter. As I pondered this, I
person was intelligent or not by sitting down with them realized it suggested something about the nature of the
in a discussion.’ Much to my surprise, we spent much ‘spirit world’ that, in three days, Vigier, who died in
of the remainder of the day discussing consciousness Paris, not only was able to find my deceased stake
and the work of all the natural philosophers of any president and make arrangements to come and visit me
Foreword ix

across the world in California, but also have a bag in the large room (with a about-20-foot ceiling)
‘transcendent experience’ arranged for me. Jean-Pierre where I slept during my visit. His young daughter had a
and, I had been in the middle of several projects and, in day earlier made a present of a small plastic bag of
my initial arrogance, I assumed he was somehow going seeds, saying she thought I’d enjoy them. They were so
to help me move this work forward. I had gotten to the good I kept the bag in hopes that, on a future visit, I
point in life of developing my transcendent abilities, could find more. I pressed shut a small zippered pouch
with sufficient decades of hard work (an LDS charge), on the side of the duffel. At that moment, the bag flew
where I could upon occasion, mostly in the sacred about 10 feet straight up in the air. I paused frozen. I
Mormon temples, sense the presence of a deceased am a physicist; I thought that is impossible. There
spirit. But this usually took the form of merely a simple couldn’t have been sufficient air in the plastic bag; in
emotion like gratitude during a performance of a proxy fact, chances are there was virtually no air in it. If it did
ordinance. That was all I was capable of discerning. somehow fly out, it certainly couldn’t have gone so
Mental content or words were much more challenging. high. As I continued to think, looking up to gauge the
During those initial days and weeks, I felt Jean- distance again, I heard two guys laughing. Peering into
Pierre’s presence almost constantly. I tried to listen. the space, I immediately recognized one of the guys
Eventually, I even waved my arms around, exclaiming, who ‘punked’ me as my father, who had been quite a
‘OK, I’m ready,’ all to no avail. Then, I sardonically tease in life and to whom I probably owe much of my
thought, perhaps, a Ouija board could work, scoffing in sense of humor. The other person kept recognition
frustration. This was three or four months later. Finally, from me for two more days. It turned out to be Vigier!
embarrassed in retrospect at my myopic and arrogant Vigier also had quite a sense of humor, but more than
perception, I finally have the ‘ah ha’ moment came to that, I was delighted and nonplussed that he had made
me: Jean-Pierre didn’t appear in order to offer me help; friends with my father in the spirit world. I wondered
he wanted me to help him! It is a Christian doctrine also if, due to the nature of the ‘veil’ between the life
that proxy ordinances done for deceased friends or on Earth and the life in the spirit world, it have to take
family members lead to security and privileges in the the two of them to perform such a prank…
spirit world [10]. Since de Broglie never married and Now, we come to the incident at the core of and the
had no other family, I decided to perform his proxy reason for the delineation in this foreword. I attest to
work also, in case it gave Vigier and his friend de the veracity of these anecdotes; I have no reason to
Broglie some special association in the spirit world. relate them other than the advancement of human
Vigier continued to be around from time to time knowledge, especially in the face of embarrassment to
with diminishing returns. I relate two additional myself or my colleagues. This and the other incidents I
pertinent anecdotes to embellish this history and for have related are foreign to most people, and those who
what is to come (and the commonality of such have them hold them sacred and keep quiet about them,
occurrences in some circles), as I am not sure when and in fact, this is generally what the authorities of
such an opportunity will come again for me to Mormonism earnestly suggest. But for me, it is
promulgate such experiences in an open arena. different; it has become a part of my profession to
The first incident relates to the late husband of my ‘open this door.’ Finally, true transcendent abilities are
close friend and colleague Elizabeth Rauscher. After no more difficult to acquire than the virtuosity in a
William Van Bise passed away, I told her the story musical instrument, i.e., at least five years of very hard
about Vigier and asked permission to perform Bill’s work is needed. Man is a spiritual being.
proxy ordinances. I didn’t sense his presence during the It was early May 2012. I had just returned from a
ordinances as I did during Vigier’s; but three or four lecture tour in Gramado, Brazil, a few days before.
months later, I was awoken by a bright red-orange ball Vigier was around, but I didn’t pay much attention to
of light at about 4 AM. It was a visitation from William, him as circumstances had given me a troubled mind,
and I was bowled over by the force of his gratitude. To along with the weariness of 40 hours of travel from door
me, this was another lesson in the nature of the spirit to door, from California to remote Brazil. My excuse
world—the difference between when a proxy also was I had never been able to go beyond recognizing
ordinance is boldly requested and when an emissary is his presence, in any case, and had no idea what he was
sent afterwards to ‘sell’ or proselytize an ordinance to able to read from my mind. And I had an 18-hour drive
an unsuspecting recipient. (ahead of me in my old Honda Civic), which did not
The other incident occurred recently in Budapest, improve my mood. Typically, when I receive these
Hungary, near the end of a visit to an old building with visitations from the dead, they occur as lit spheres about
my colleagues. The old building was both an institute one-third the size of a normal head in an inner space, I
and a home to its director. I was packing a small duffel assume, near mine, in a proximity such that I can sense