Digital Nature and Quantum Nature

I visited Yoichi Ochiai's "Null's Tetralemma" exhibition, which was held primarily at the Kusakabe Folk Museum in Hida-Takayama. Here, "tetralemma" is a Buddhist concept; in terms of logic, it can be described as a methodology that leads people to "emptiness" (sunyata)—a state of mind beyond words that cannot be established by written characters—by intentionally colliding contradictory ideas. Ochiai links this "emptiness" taught in Buddhism to the concept of "null," which signifies undefined in computer science, using it as a motif to represent one aspect of the worldview he proposes, known as "Digital Nature."

As an example of the tetralemma as logic, Ochiai cites:

• Being human

• Not being human

• Being human and not being human

• Neither being human nor not being human

In terms of ordinary logic, none of these are compatible. However, in Buddhism, this tetralemma koan is used as a methodology to help one internalize "emptiness" by realizing that all of these are denied, or that all of these are realized simultaneously.

This concept of Digital Nature is not merely idealism; it is also a reality that is being widely understood as the world changes due to the intense AI revolution. As AI agents and various immersive AR and VR technologies are implemented in our daily lives, the view of nature held by young people, especially the AI-native generation, will likely change significantly. For them, the boundary between the computer world and the real world will become increasingly seamless.

Now, let's talk about quantum computers. A quantum computer uses quantum superposition states, like "Schrödinger's cat," within its operating principles. This technology has also been advancing rapidly and is attracting global attention. This is because quantum computers are believed to be capable of performing calculations faster than conventional computers, at least for specific tasks.

It is highly probable that AI composed of quantum computers will emerge in the future. If such an AI acquires "consciousness," it is possible that the quantum AI itself will construct a worldview different from that of humans. The quantum AIs might call this "Quantum Nature."

The relationship between this "Quantum Nature" and the "Digital Nature" of conventional computers is not simple. If one thinks naively, it might seem that Quantum Nature encompasses Digital Nature, but upon closer inspection, that is not the case.

Quantum Nature is a view of nature derived from the principles of quantum mechanics. Furthermore, it is now clear that quantum mechanics is not a deterministic realism, but an epistemology based on probability concepts. Quantum mechanics is a form of information theory. And that information is a concept that cannot be uniquely determined unless one defines not only the object it describes but also for whom the information is intended. For example, the information that a die will land on any side with a 1/6 probability differs for a person who has detailed data on the structure of the die. Depending on the amount of prior knowledge about the subject, the probability—and the information that probability describes—differs for each observer.

Since the wave functions and state vectors that appear in quantum mechanics are also defined by probability distributions of physical quantities, the quantum states they describe are also concepts dependent on the observer. Moreover, the quantum mechanical worldview is one where the depiction of even a specific physical process differs from observer to observer.

However, both wave functions and state vectors require "measurement experiments" composed of combinations of 0 or 1 bit inquiries to be determined. This method is called "quantum state tomography" and is commonly used in physics experiments. In other words, to grasp Quantum Nature, which is based on the continuous linear superposition of 0 and 1, a Digital Nature based on 0 and 1 is actually required first. In this sense, one cannot simply say that "Quantum Nature encompasses Digital Nature"; rather, for the observer, "Digital Nature is what creates Quantum Nature." In modern terms, Digital Nature is emerging from Quantum Nature.

I would like to introduce the non-trivial structure of Digital Nature and Quantum Nature in more detail in various ways in the future.