Chapter 118 The Essence of Thinking Part 1

Lin Sen: "You just said that Mind Tactility was successful, could that allow us to communicate while blocking Sophons?"

Marcus: "It's not possible. The reason our thoughts are not monitored by Sophons is that thought at the quantum level is not subject to Sophon surveillance.

"As far as brain neurons are concerned, if the Trisolarans wish, they can know about any synaptic electric signal transmission and neurotransmitter release. After certain simulation calculations and extensive observation, the Trisolarans can brute-force a solution.

"If that were all there was to our thoughts, then the idea that Trisolarans can't read human thoughts wouldn't exist. However, the reality is, even if the Trisolarans use a significant amount of computing power, they can at most know our conclusions and understandings of some simple propositions, which are meaningless to them.

"They can't even manage that much, which requires constant brain experiments to conclude. Without conducting targeted research on the human brain and relying only on observations, it's difficult for them to reach any conclusions.

"Our thinking process inputs thought symbols, processes information through the Quantum Thought Room, and outputs new thought symbols. The Mind Tactility device processes the output thought symbols and can convert them into another person's input thought symbols.

"Essentially, Mind Tactility still converts our thought signals into photoelectric signals, and then transforms the photoelectric signals back into thought signals, which naturally can be monitored and deciphered by Sophons."

"I guess what you are getting at is thought resonance that occurs without the aid of the Mind Tactility device, and whether such thought communication can block Sophons?

"In theory, it is possible, but the reality is that achieving thought resonance is extremely difficult. Tyler and Hines are already one in a million, a pair with such closely matching brain wave frequencies.

"Moreover, even if thought resonance occurs, it's random and can't convey information intentionally. Even if the transmission is successful, the receiver might not know that it's a message from you and may even consider it their own stray thought.

"Of course, if the resonating thought exceeds one's own knowledge, it's possible to infer that it's information transmitted from another person. But once you really deduce that it's transmitted information, you might sever that resonance, which is similar to our lucid dreams. Making contact is very difficult; typically, one judges through recollection if someone has transmitted any information."

"No matter how difficult this connection is, it's enough for us. It's also our biggest breakthrough against the Sophon blockade.

"This is also the basis of Hines and Tyler's connection, but its use is still too limited now. Even if we find some individuals who can resonate with the Wallfacers, these people would be tightly monitored by Sophons, and could even expose the Wallfacer plans, rendering it meaningless."

Lin Sen: "It seems blocking the Sophons is still a long way off. I was too presumptuous.

"By the way, I have another question. Taylor discovered the anti-macroelectrons, and you researched them. Why did you use anti-macroelectrons to transform into quantum beings instead of directly using positive macroelectrons (Ball Lightning)? What exactly did they discover?"

Marcus: "Actually, that's the main reason Taylor was willing to sacrifice himself, and it's also the reason why thoughts can traverse the Macro Quantum Space and engage in entanglement resonance with quantum life in Quantum Space.

"The true cause of entanglement resonance is not anti-macroelectrons but rather another substance in the positron-electron pairs."

Lin Sen: "I've been wondering why Taylor, fully aware of what a Wallfacer's death represents, would take that step. He must have been very confident to take that risk.

"If it were just for a speculation, that would seriously underestimate him, and that must be the reason he was willing to sacrifice himself!"

This had also been Lin Sen's curiosity—how Taylor could opt for sacrifice based on mere speculation, bringing incalculable implications to the Wallfacer Project.

Even if Taylor couldn't emerge from his inner self, the responsibility he bore should have prevented him from choosing sacrifice lightly.

Marcus: "To explain this question, let's first discuss what thought is, and then talk about the relationship between thought and that substance.

"The traditional brain thought structure theory may believe that thought is a product of chemical reactions, suggesting that our emotions, like joy, anger... etc., result from our brain neurons processing certain synaptic signals, spurring the body to secrete hormones that make us feel comfort or discomfort.

"We record these as emotions or moods, which, after a lot of repetitive training, form thoughts. That is, this theory believes the essence of thought is chemical reactions, possessing objective materiality.

"Hines's deconstruction of the brain structure is the ultimate form of this theoretical research, but in reality, it's still just the initial form of brain research, merely the tip of the iceberg of thought. The above theory can at most explain some instincts and simple cognitive issues, no different from ordinary species."

"The latest research has found that the existing model of the human brain structure is incapable of supporting the complex thinking we possess; it can only sustain the sort of thinking akin to that of monkeys, which implies that there must be deeper causes for thought.

"Deeper still is the realm of quantum-level thinking in the brain that Hines studied. This isn't to suggest that thought occurs on an ultra-microscopic quantum level involving protons and electrons, but rather that thought essentially occurs in the neurons, exhibiting fundamental quantum characteristics.

"The microscopic and the submicroscopic seem to exhibit no difference in certain respects, so we've defined the space within the brain where quantum thinking occurs as submicroscopic.

"At the submicroscopic level, we suspect that there must be some mechanism that bridges the submicroscopic with the microscopic, endowing the submicroscopic with microscopic quantum features.

"We've named this conduit 'Quantum Thought Space,' and we continually explore what exactly exists within it. It's intangible and invisible, yet it affects our thinking.

"We speculate that this is the true source of thought."

Lin Sen, "You've discovered this existence… What… is it?"

Marcus, "You might find it hard to believe what I'm about to say, but this intangible substance isn't a new material. It was discovered before, but now we have a new understanding of it.

"It's not among the 61 fundamental particles we've currently discovered (the reason it's 61 is that the last particle, the graviton, hasn't been found and might not even exist). It could be called a matter-antimatter dipole, or a quantum resonator, or even a field-state particle.

"These names might be unfamiliar to you, but it has another moniker in the fringe scientific community, which you must know—it's… dark matter."

Lin Sen, "Dark matter? As in the dark matter that's purported to make up 95% of the universe? Are you saying dark matter is related to the origin of thought?"

Lin Sen, "The general public may not fully understand dark matter, but we aren't completely unfamiliar with it.

"There are four forces in the universe: gravity, electromagnetic force, strong nuclear force, and weak nuclear force. However, dark matter interacts only through gravity, not through the electromagnetic force.

"We perceive everything in the world fundamentally through the electromagnetic force—not gravity, as what we feel is the support from the ground, which upon further understanding is theoretically caused by Earth's gravity. Dark matter doesn't interact electromagnetically, hence we can't see or touch it, yet we still conduct a certain degree of research on it.

"Quarks, electrons, tau particles, muons… they all have corresponding antiparticles. Once a matter and an antimatter particle collide, they annihilate, releasing vast amounts of energy. In future interstellar wars, this might become a conventional weapon.

"But in reality, matter and antimatter particles need not always collide. The reason is the presence of matter-antimatter dipoles in between. Matter and antimatter particles come together to form particle pairs through these dipoles, creating composite particles of matter-antimatter.

"Matter-antimatter dipoles, also known as quantum resonators, are dark matter, and we speculate that they are connected to the origin of our thought.

"Of course, our research on dark matter is still quite preliminary. Matter-antimatter dipoles are a form of dark matter, but not all dark matter may be made up of these dipoles.

"Dark matter is a collective term for substances that don't interact electromagnetically. Our understanding of dark matter is just the tip of the iceberg.

"Tyler utilized anti-macro-electron quantization with the goal to employ entangled states of matter and antimatter to achieve entanglement resonance with Hines."

Lin Sen, "This gives me a new perspective on dark matter. I've always thought of it as a widespread but invisible substance in the universe.

"Invisible because it doesn't engage in electromagnetic interactions, yet we can detect it due to its gravitational effects.

"I hadn't considered that it might be connected to our thinking and consciousness. And according to your theory, dark matter comes in many forms, with quantum resonators being related to our consciousness. Other types of dark matter might have different roles that are still unclear to us.

"So why do you believe it's the dark matter in the form of quantum resonators that is connected to our thought and consciousness?"