Abstract
A two year long experimental dataset in which authors of [1] claim to find evidence of mind-matter interaction is independently re-analyzed. In this experiment, participants are asked to periodically shift their attention towards or away from a double-slit optical apparatus. Shifts in fringe visibility of the interference pattern are monitored and tested against the common sense null hypothesis that such shifts should not correlate with the participant’s attention state. We i/ show that the original statistical test used in [1] contains an erroneous trimming procedure leading to uncontrolled false positives and underestimated p-values, ii/ propose a deeper analysis of the dataset, identifying several preprocessing parameters and carefully assessing the results’ robustness regarding the choice of these parameters. We observe, as in [1], shifts in fringe visibility in the direction expected by the mind-matter interaction hypothesis. However, these shifts are not deemed significant (p > 0.05). Our re-analysis concludes that this particular dataset does not contain evidence of mind-matter interaction.
Highlights
The hypothesis of a mind-matter interaction, that is, the possibility that human intention may have an impact on matter at a distance, is usually regarded by most physicists as a highly controversial concept
Even if this interpretation has been and still is considered by many minds of quantum mechanics [2,3,4], it is today blatantly disregarded by a majority of physicists [5] partly because it flirts with the overwhelmingly complex mind/body problem
Following the analyses published in [1], we start by concentrating on the average of the fringe visibility around fringe number 9, that is, on the interval represented in Fig 2 between two vertical dashed lines
Summary
The hypothesis of a mind-matter interaction, that is, the possibility that human intention may have an impact on matter at a distance, is usually regarded by most physicists as a highly controversial concept. Independent re-analysis of alleged mind-matter interaction in double-slit experimental data most of which keep consciousness aside–, physicists generally prefer mathematically controlled objective concepts such as quantum decoherence [7] or Everett’s many-worlds interpretation [8]. It is well worth reminding that, strong and heated are personal convictions around this debate, consensus over the quantum measurement problem has not yet been reached [5] and that any attempt to provide empirical information on this matter should be widely welcome Along those lines, the experiment first proposed by Ibison and Jeffers in [9] is worthy of interest. In [1], the authors analyze a two-year long experiment with many different subjects, claim to find small but statistically significant shifts of the fringe visibility, and interpret it as evidence of mind matter interaction.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
