Let me guess. You came to read this post because you have kinda, sorta heard about quantum mechanics before and you want to brush up on it? Maybe learn a thing or two? Maybe you feel a bit bad that you don’t know that much about it, but then instantly feel better because you remember the excuse “even scientists don’t fully understand it, so how can I?!” Well, those were some of my reasons for picking up this book in the first place, but sadly it ended up falling quite short of the mark. So you can fully understand the experience of reading this book, I’ll describe it in terms of a standard 3-course meal (the book was divided into 3 parts; hah, I’m so original!).

Part 1: Macroshift in Society (Appetizer)

Image via Clipart Kid

The appetizer consisted entirely of raw, organic vegetables. Imagine you are at a restaurant with 2 other people and this huge-ass platter arrives at your table. Yeah it looks pretty and yeah it’s healthy for you, but when it takes up the first 79 pages (basically half of the freaking book), it gets old pretty quick. You don’t want all of the vegetables to get thrown away, so you continue to mindlessly plop them into your mouth as long as they are in front of you. Might as well; maybe the extra vitamin A will actually help your eyesight.

The macroshift Laszlo is referring to is the idea that we are currently living in a crucial period of instability and change. We are rapidly approaching a “bifurcation,” which means the instability will either lead to a massive breakdown in the system or a breakthrough toward a better system. This has happened numerous times in the past with the evolution of macromolecules to bacteria to eukaryotes all the way up to complex organisms in the present.

It isn’t too difficult to see why the times we are living in are unstable. Climate change, severely uneven distribution of wealth, radical terrorist groups, unsustainable consumption: it’s filled with issues we all know about and often feel helpless to affect. Instead of continuing on with business as usual, he argues we need to evolve socially and culturally past our differences to form a global civilization of cooperation.

Yes, we all understand the need for our society to evolve, but the big question is how? Wanting world peace, despite being instilled in the minds of children and Miss Universe contestants, is an idea that continues to seem less feasible as the years go by.

Part 2: Paradigm Shift in Science (Main Course)

Image via Ron Thorne from jazztalk.net

After your plate of vegetables basically fills you up, you are looking forward to finally having the tasty, hearty meal that you came here for. Out comes a beautiful plate of Alaskan king crab legs, but before you start digging in your server tells you something you didn’t expect: the plate is on the house! You don’t have to pay a cent for it.  He then quickly says something incoherent before walking back to the kitchen. A ton of questions rush through your mind, but hey they are free and look pretty tasty. You end up saying fuck it and decide to eat them anyway. Overall, it ends up being a good meal when you don’t think too hard about it.

The main theory put forth in this part of the book is the idea of a fundamental field in the universe that is located outside space and time. In quantum mechanics it is referred to as the vacuum state or quantum vacuum, but Laszlo refers to it as the “cosmic plenum.” All forms of energy and particles emerged from this medium and are embedded within it.

“The reality recognized at the frontiers of physics is a cosmic plenum filled with universal forces and virtual particles. The observable and measurable world of particles and particle interactions is a subset of this plenum.”

Two main pieces of evidence suggest the reality of this theory. For one, more and more scientists are coming to the conclusion that the level of spacetime is not the ultimate level in the universe. Physicists working on grand unified theories (GUTs) that have attempted to merge the 4 fundamental forces (gravity, electromagnetic, strong nuclear and weak nuclear) recognize the usefulness in looking elsewhere for an explanation.

The other idea, however, is a bit more tangible and interesting. Evidence suggests that the observable universe is connected at an atomic level without respect to distance. Quantum entanglement, which Einstein once called “spooky action at a distance,” is a phenomenon that involves pairs or groups of particles. When the quantum state of one is measured, the quantum state of the other changes instantaneously regardless of the distance that separates them.  They are connected in a system of coordinates, or wave function, that describes the state of each particle in it.

What does this all mean? Through Laszlo’s interpretation, it suggests that we are all fundamentally connected and can act in coherence with each other by tapping into the cosmic plenum. Indian philosophical traditions refer to an Akashic field underlying our physical reality that we have the potential to tap into through spiritual practice.  Through this breakthrough, we can achieve a universal consciousness that will result in the evolution of human society. We would actually be able to achieve world peace! It sounds amazing, as long as you don’t think too hard about it. Maybe it is all actually true, but the enormous logical gaps between the science and his conclusions makes it harder to accept. Regardless, it can still be a good meal to enjoy.

Part 3: Global Shift in Action (Dessert)

Image via ElizabethBH from All Recipes

For dessert, the server comes back with a plate of chocolate chip cookies (yes you have to pay for these). Supposedly the chef has been perfecting this recipe for years and has a personal attachment to these cookies, but at the end of the day they don’t taste too different from the hundreds of others you have had in your lifetime. They comfort you, but you probably wont think too much about them an hour from now.

The last part of the book was dedicated to an association Laszlo founded called The Club of Budapest. It is a group of people from all walks of life dedicated to the evolution of a new planetary consciousness. A few famous people in the club include Paolo Coelho, Jane Goodall, the Dalai Lama, and Elie Weisel. Their website isn’t very helpful, and I have no idea what they have actually done other than write up a manifesto on planetary consciousness. The book also discusses other organizations such as the GlobalShift University, the World Wisdom Council, and the International Survey of Emergent Cultures.

Overall, the book was pretty heavy on preaching and short on the science. It had some interesting concepts, but it’s going to take more than a couple of shaky theories and a small association to change anything.