The Coming Technocalypse - Part 1: CERN, Quantum Computing, and Particle Teleportation

As we rapidly approach the scientifically-prophesied year of singularity in 2045, we look at our modern technology and wonder where it is headed? The scientific discoveries made today will become the norm and lead to commonplace devices tomorrow. What might these devices look like? Where will they lead humanity? Can we trust in our own human innovations to save us; or in believing that, are we already doomed?

Science and technology are heading into unknown realms. Even though the ones in charge admittedly don't understand the full consequences of their research, they still continue in their pursuits. They are on the ultimate quest of discovery and no one will stand in their way. In a strange way, we as Christians might be able to understand their passion, at least to a certain extent. We are on the quest of the Great Commission, and nothing, be it torture nor death, will stand in our way. Our mission is set forth by Jesus Christ for the betterment of mankind and eternal salvation of their souls. Therein lies the difference. The goals of innovation outside of God are the physical betterment of mankind, as determined by man himself, and the extension of physical life with no regard to the human soul and spirit. At times we can benefit from these innovations, at other times they bring in a moral dilemma: where is the line?

Instead of allowing mankind to define the line for us, we should allow God. Simply speaking, things just seem to work out better that way. Sure, it may mean that we can't do everything we might want to do, but the reward and security is more than worth it.

In this post, I want to look at three innovations being researched today. My hope is you will ask yourself, is this technology crossing the line? Would God approve? If not, what can we do about it? As of now, I believe the best thing we can do is be informed and prepared to give an answer if asked.

It also helps if we understand the origins of technology. From chapter 2 of my book, Cherubim Chariots:

"There is a common tradition that teaches the Serpent of the Garden of Eden was the one responsible for the development of ancient and modern technology. This view stems from certain verses in the third chapter of the book of Genesis:

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Genesis 3:17-19

23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.

Genesis 3:23

The common interpretation of verse 19, specifically where it says in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, is that Adam would now have to work to prepare his own food. No longer would it be readily available as it was in the Garden of Eden; if Adam wanted bread, he would now have to make it himself. Also, verse 23 states that they had to till the ground. Since tilling ground requires tools and innovation, and since the Serpent was the one who tempted them into this position, it is commonly believed that the development of technology resulted from the influence of the Serpent."

There are those that state the LHC at CERN can almost be looked at as a giant interdimensional portal. Back in 2010, Reuters reported:

"Guido Tonelli, spokesman for one of the CERN specialist teams monitoring operations in the vast, subterranean LHC, said probing for extra dimensions -- besides length, breadth, height and time -- would become easier as the energy of the proton collisions in it is increased in 2011." (1)

At the time of this post, we are mere days away from another massive power-up of the LHC. One of the many goals at CERN is the discovery of extra spatial and/or temporal dimensions. The CERN press office states:

"As far as we know, we live in four dimensions, three of space and one of time. But experimentalists at the Large Hadron Collider are looking for evidence that the universe contains more than that. The existence of extra dimensions could explain some puzzling properties of the universe." (2)

The fact is, whether their intentions are malevolent or benevolent, humanity simply does not have enough information to properly calculate the consequences of their experiments. Such is the same with an emerging technology known as "quantum computing". Quantum computing relies on things like superposition and quantum entanglement to operate. (3) From my book, Quantum Creation:

"Another interesting thing about photons is their ability to seemingly communicate with each other by means of something at an instant. Einstein called this “spooky action at a distance”, yet we would recognize it today as “quantum entanglement”. Somehow, by means that are not yet understood, photons seem to be able to communicate vast distances at faster-than-light speeds. This, of course, would seem to be theoretically impossible. It is no wonder Einstein was not a fan of this idea of quantum entanglement. However, by various means, it has shown to be true. Regardless of how far away they are from each other, photons seem to be able to communicate with each other instantaneously. To this day, how exactly this works is a complete mystery." (4)

Again, we see an example of mankind attempting to utilize something they do not fully understand. From my own personal opinion (keeping in mind I am not a physicist, so take it for what it is worth), the only way something like quantum entanglement can be possible is if it is a phenomenon operating in higher spatial dimensions.

For example, imagine a two-dimensional universe called Flatland. (5) If I, as a three-dimensional being (speaking only of spatial dimensions), were to stick my finger into Flatland, a Flatlander would only see a line appear before him, and through inspection, would be able to determine it is a circle. However, this is just a single, two-dimensional slice of my actual finger. Now imagine if I were to stick two fingers into Flatland. The Flatlander would have no way of knowing the two circles he now sees are parts of the same higher-dimensional object. He would assume they are similar, possibly even the same, yet separate.

We can use the Flatland example to help visualize higher dimension, as I explain in depth in Quantum Creation. If we see two three-dimensional spheres before us, we might assume they are similar, yet separate. However, we might be mistaken, because these spheres could just be three-dimensional slices of an object made of four spatial dimensions, or even more. This might help explain something as strange as quantum entanglement. If the entangled particles are actually just three-dimensional slices of a single higher-dimensional object, we would not have two separate particles exchanging information; we would have two slices of the same object receiving information at an instant.

If there is any validity to this view (and I admit, that is a very big "if"), then we really don't know what we are dealing with. We cannot comprehend the entire higher-dimensional structure that would make quantum entanglement possible. We have no idea what the consequences of trying to use entangled particles for the purposes of computing really are. It has even been admitted recently that the basic building blocks of quantum computing are "highly unstable", and yet we continue in our pursuits. (6) We may very well be delving and probing into higher dimensions than our own.

Similar ignorance is found in the research of particle teleportation, sometimes called "quantum teleportation". A definition, according to Wikipedia, is as follows:

"Quantum teleportation is a process by which quantum information (e.g. the exact state of an atom or photon) can be transmitted (exactly, in principle) from one location to another, with the help of classical communication and previously shared quantum entanglement between the sending and receiving location." (7)

Here we see the utilization of quantum entanglement repeated. The most important thing for us to realize is these things are no longer confined to the realm of science fiction; they are a reality. Last year (2014), it was reported by CNET:

"Physicists at the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, part of the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, report that they sent quantum data concerning the spin state of an electron to another electron about 10 feet away. Quantum teleportation has been recorded in the past, but the results in this study have an unprecedented replication rate of 100 percent at the current distance, the team said.

Thanks to the strange properties of entanglement, this allows for that data -- only quantum data, not classical information like messages or even simple bits -- to be teleported seemingly faster than the speed of light...Proving Einstein wrong about the purview and completeness of quantum mechanics is not just an academic boasting contest. Proving the existence of entanglement and teleportation -- and getting experiments to work efficiently, in larger systems and at greater distances -- holds the key to translating quantum mechanics to practical applications, like quantum computing. For instance, quantum computers could utilize that speed to unlock a whole new generation of unprecedented computing power." (8)

The main point with this post is there are emerging technologies being developed with little to no regard to the consequences. Should anything go wrong, we are the ones who will suffer those consequences. With the 2045 singularity event rapidly approaching, I believe it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to look into these things and prepare accordingly. The information is available; there is no need to take my own word for it. We all have that responsibility to move from the uninformed to the informed. The good news is that you do not have to have a doctorate or be an absolute genius to understand these things; strip away the scientific terminology and the concepts are available to the level of intelligence of the general population (and I am absolutely putting myself in that category). We are not required to adhere, or even listen, to what the world tells us. As Romans 12:2 states:

"And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Thank you for reading, take care, and God bless!

Josh Peck
http://www.ministudyministry.com

NOTES:
1 - http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/11/15/us-science-cern-idUSTRE6AE3QU20101115
2 - http://press.web.cern.ch/backgrounders/extra-dimensions