Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or Discrete Form?

Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by red75prime on Tuesday May 22, 2018 @12:43AM (#17123775)

Computers can store structures designed to be mathematically similar to quantum information too (see [0] for example). It doesn't mean that computers can efficiently perform quantum computations. If there's evidence that humans can efficiently solve problems in BQP [1] complexity class, like cracking RSA encryption, I'd like to hear it.

[0] http://quantum-studio.net/ [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BQP

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Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by macawfish on Tuesday May 22, 2018 @11:44AM (#17126779)

I don't know of an example from BQP, but 3d protein folding is NP-complete and humans have outperformed computers at protein folding. Although I don't know how you'd even directly compare humans and computers. I suppose that's a big part of what this article is grappling with.

The interesting thing to me is not if humans can solve exactly the same problems as quantum computers with lots of qubits (Quantum computers are not the identical to all of quantum theory!) The interesting question to me is if humans can hold and pass around irreducibly probabilistic states without collapsing them.

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Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by red75prime on Tuesday May 22, 2018 @01:51PM (#17127940)

Contemplation of brain cloning and consciousness creates a feeling of paradox, then no-cloning theorem comes to mind. Right?

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Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by red75prime on Wednesday May 23, 2018 @03:17AM (#17131966)

If it is indeed your line of reasoning, I don't understand how it is supposed to work. If the quantum state doesn't influence macroscopic behavior, then it's useless. If it does, then it will collapse.

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Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by macawfish on Wednesday May 23, 2018 @09:04PM (#17140046)

I was being unclear. I'm wondering if the brain might hold probabilistic states for extended ("macroscopic") periods of time so that they can be observed/collapsed later, but not immediately.

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Re:Is Information in the Brain Represented in Continuous or ... by posterboy on Wednesday May 23, 2018 @01:59AM (#17131726)

A glass of water contains quantum information, too, doesn't mean it obviates that information other than by being just a glass of water.

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