Information in Life, Consciousness, Quantum Physics, and Paranormal Phenomena
📄 Original study📌 Appears in:
Plain English Summary
After decades studying psychic phenomena, Kennedy steps back and asks a bold question: what if we've been thinking about psi all wrong? He starts with a clear framework — information is just symbols, something to carry them, and a system that gives them meaning. Biology runs on information (DNA, memory, learning, culture), and so does quantum physics. But here's the kicker: despite years of trying, researchers haven't convincingly shown that a person's mind can influence quantum events, and current parapsychology results can't be reliably separated from experimental bias. So Kennedy proposes a dramatic shift. Instead of treating psi as a human ability we should be able to train and harness, maybe psychic phenomena come from independent supernatural agencies with their own agendas — showing up as spiritual experiences that shape a person's life direction. It's unfalsifiable, he admits, but it neatly explains why nobody has ever managed to bottle psi for practical use despite decades of effort.
Research Notes
Foundational theoretical paper representing Kennedy's mature position after decades of psi research. Proposes shift from human-ability models to supernatural agency models to explain psi's capricious, evasive nature. Critically important for understanding why confirmatory experimental paradigms have consistently failed and what alternative research directions might be productive. Bridges information theory, quantum physics, biology, and parapsychology. Part of Kennedy's series on methodology and the nature of psi phenomena. The supernatural agency hypothesis, while unfalsifiable, offers explanation for why psi cannot be controlled or used for practical applications despite decades of effort.
Information consists of symbols, media for storing and transmitting the symbols, and an interpretational infrastructure that establishes meaning. Information processing in living systems includes genetics, perception, behavior, memory, learning, communication, imagination, creativity, and culture. This article summarizes and clarifies concepts pertaining to information as they emerge in scientific research on life, consciousness, quantum physics, and paranormal phenomena. After extensive research, the hypothesis that an observer can sometimes paranormally influence the outcome of quantum events lacks convincing empirical support. Current experimental results in parapsychology do not have properties of a signal in noise and cannot be convincingly distinguished from methodological bias. The findings may be most consistent with a model where paranormal phenomena result from supernatural information processing agencies with relatively independent motivations that manifest as spirituality and influence the meaning and direction of an individual's life.
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📋 Cite this paper
Kennedy, J.E (2011). Information in Life, Consciousness, Quantum Physics, and Paranormal Phenomena. Journal of Parapsychology.
@article{kennedy_2011_information_consciousness,
title = {Information in Life, Consciousness, Quantum Physics, and Paranormal Phenomena},
author = {Kennedy, J.E},
year = {2011},
journal = {Journal of Parapsychology},
}