Is the Universe an Illusion? (part 2)

In my previous post on this topic, I presented a logical reasoning for why the universe must be an illusion. This time, I intend to present some scientific evidence. Most of these ideas have been obtained from here.

First, a primer on consciousness. What makes the entire universe tick? We observe macroscopic phenomena such as the earth revolving around the sun, apples falling to the earth, people moving and interacting with each other, and in a subtle sense, individual atoms interacting with each other. What is the cause of all this? Some people say this is just random chance that the universe has panned out in this way, but quantum mechanics tells us that if this is so, then there are other possibilities, and hence other universes where these possibilities occur. The question still remains - what caused it in the first place?

The universe is commonly thought of as a machine, with individual components working as cogs, and consciousness was never really acknowledged. But scientists today are finding it more and more difficult to ignore consciousness as the reason for existence. Consider this: It is a commonly known phenomena that sub-atomic (and other) particles behave differently when observed as opposed to their behaviour when unobserved (e.g. light as both a wave and a particle). This projection of different behaviour is caused by human consciousness. In my previous post, I described how reality is closely associated with my senses. The existance of any object outside of my consciousness cannot be proved at all. Therefore consciousness is the direct cause of all reality, and as a corollory, consciousness is all that exists. This is the conclusion that scientists working on quantum mechanics are coming to, and this idea is gaining increasing credence.

The EPR paradox has instantaneous communication (read: greater than the speed of light) as its implication, also known as a non-local event. Looked at another way, it means that the separation between particles is an illusion.

As per the standard model of the atom, one of the fundamental particles is a quark. While admittedly, the standard model is not a complete theory (gravity is not explained, for example), it presents a very good picture of the atom. According to the standard model, quarks, while they possess mass, are only one-dimensional things. But three of them combine to form a three-dimensional proton or neutron. The problem is that quarks cannot really exist, because if they exist, they become three-dimensional things. The entire universe is, therefore, composed of particles which do not really exist. The universe, therefore, is only an illusion. Even if quantum theory is disproved for some reason in the future, the experimental evidence itself showing that the universe is an illusion is overwhelming.

It is also not necessary to take the aid of quantum mechanics to show that the universe is an illusion. Consider a beam of light travelling from point A (say, the sun) to point B (say, you, the observer). According to you, the light takes about eight minutes to get from A to B. But as far as the light itself is concerned, it reached point B in no time, since time stops at the speed of light. There is an equation (which is, incidentally, fundamental to quantum mechanics) that shows that time is zero, meaning, it does not exist. But you and me experience time. This is an apparent contradiction, but it really means that time is an illusion. If time is an illusion, then so is space, because we cannot experience space without time. And again, this leads to the fact that the universe is an illusion.

PS: That the universe is an illusion, and pure consciousness is all that exists, is also known as the Advaita philosophy.

PPS: Before you start jumping on me, this is not about trying to prove religion with the aid of science. These are conclusions drawn by scientists independent of religion.