A strange new theory known as panpsychism is generating interest and debate among scientists and philosophers. According to this theory, all matter, including not only living organisms but also inorganic objects such as the Sun, has some kind of consciousness or mind.
The theory of panpsychism, which holds that everything in the universe has a mind or mind-like qualities, is gaining popularity again, even though it has very ancient roots. For some scientists, panpsychism is metaphysical nonsense. But supporters of the theory insist that everything around us, even the Sun, has consciousness, writes Futurism.
The theory of panpsychism assumes that all matter has some form of mind or consciousness. Even the Sun has consciousness, according to one scientist. The concept of panpsychism has been around for a long time. The Italian philosopher Francesco Patrizi coined the term at the end of the 16th century. But in fact, this concept goes back to the time of Ancient Greece, when some philosophers believed that the entire surrounding world is a living being, endowed with a soul and mind.
Panpsychism gained particular popularity in the 19th century, but in the 1920s it was destroyed by a philosophical movement called logical positivism. It is the idea that scientific knowledge is the only kind of acceptable knowledge, and that everything else is metaphysical nonsense.
But the inability of the empirical sciences to solve the complex problem of consciousness, that is, why and how matter gives rise to the experience of consciousness, has recently revived interest in panpsychism.
For example, 20 years ago, the Italian neuroscientist and psychiatrist Giulio Tononi proposed an integrated information theory of consciousness, which states that consciousness is essentially present almost everywhere.
10 years ago, the American neuroscientist Christoph Koch suggested that if chunks of matter can form into a human body and become conscious, there is no reason why groups of elementary particles can't do the same.
Recently, the biologist Rupert Sheldrake published an article in which he proposed that not only humans have consciousness, but also our entire galaxy. Scientists also believe that the Sun has consciousness.
According to the scientist, consciousness does not necessarily have to be limited to the brain. The connection between the mind and physical systems is apparently carried out through the rhythmic electromagnetic fields that are present in our brain. They are also present on and around the Sun, and they may be the link between the solar mind and the body of the Sun, the biologist believes.
So if the sun has consciousness, it probably knows about activities within the solar system, Sheldrake suggests, particularly here on Earth, as well as its relationship with other stars within the galaxy and the galaxy in general.
But there is no evidence to support this theory. However, although it is unusual, it is still interesting. The sun is a complex object that holds many secrets that have yet to be discovered by humans.
If everything the scientist says is somewhat true, then what can the Sun be thinking? According to Sheldrake, the Sun may be choosing which direction to send solar flares or coronal mass ejections, which can have a huge impact on life on Earth and to which our technology is very vulnerable.
