Thought paradigms and the need for a new TOE?
Thought paradigms run the society
Introduction
Humanity's existential questions have historically been some of the most fundamental and multifaceted. These questions have been framed in countless ways and expressed through numerous forms, where each culture, era, and individual has sought to understand their place in the world, the universe, and the unknown. Despite the fact that these questions are deeply personal and subjective, humanity has often looked for answers through common beliefs, philosophies, and rituals throughout history.
What we often call "worship" has been a way for people to relate to, embrace, or control the elements that have shaped and defined their lives. From the inclination to worship the forces of nature, to our own bodies and minds, faith and worship have always been intertwined with our existential reflections.
In this journey, humanity has not only searched for external forces—gods, weather, or even games of chance—but has also seen itself as a central actor in creation, where the body, soul, and intellect have been arenas for self-reflection and transcendence. Throughout time, humans have developed systems to understand and control nature, navigate suffering and death, and find meaning in an apparently chaotic and changing universe.
One of the most striking aspects of this existential quest is humanity's ability to form beliefs around what cannot be seen or proven. Where other species find security in their instincts, humans have, through faith and symbolism, constructed complex worldviews and cosmological systems. These systems have often been deeply rooted in understanding the origin of life, our purpose, and our end—the questions that are not only answered through science but also through philosophy, religion, and metaphysics.
The paths we have walked through these thought worlds are many. We have worshiped celestial bodies such as the sun and moon, sought wisdom from deceased ancestors, and found comfort in the thought of an afterlife. We have also dismissed these traditions in favor of embracing science and theory—such as evolution—or relied on theoretical models about the structure of the universe and the nature of time. In this constant shifting between the believing and the scientific, we have sought a balance where our need for explanation meets our need for trust.
Another aspect of humanity's existential quest is our view of ourselves. Throughout history, we have explored and worshiped our own selves, from the ancient philosophers' quest for self-awareness to today's focus on self-actualization and personal development. We have also worshiped the life force, an invisible power that drives us, shapes our thoughts and actions, and which we may not fully understand but are deeply dependent on.
Our belief in evolution has tangibly changed the way we understand life. Today, many of us view human origins through the lens of biological changes, while others still adhere to more spiritual or creationist perspectives. This is an example of how our search for truth is not static but continuously develops in line with our new insights and experiences.
Through millennia, we have also approached death and the unknown, often through myths and religion, where we have worshiped concepts of heaven and hell, or believed in a cosmic justice that governs our destinies. The mystery of death has for many been an extension of the mystery of life—a dimension where our existential search finds its most intense expressions.
However, our belief in the unknown has not always had its roots in the supernatural. We have also worshiped phenomena such as chance and fate, where the world sometimes seems to be a result of chaos and coincidence, rather than a strict order. Whether it is through astrological predictions or theories of the multiverse, humanity has always sought to understand the underlying patterns of what may seem unlikely and unpredictable.
In this broader context, we see that humanity's existential search has not been a simple, linear path. Rather, it has been a complex, multifaceted journey that has involved everything from belief in the elements of nature to theories about chance, death, and the meaning of life. This searching process, whether through faith, philosophy, science, or psychology, is a central part of our humanity. We are not only searching for answers to our questions—we are also seeking to understand the questions themselves, and thereby our own place in the grand cosmic web.
As humanity now faces artificial general intelligence (AGI) while simultaneously undergoing an existential crisis, there may be a need for new thought paradigms that can encompass the entire complexity, from micro to macro in the universe, and all that we experience as humans in physical, mental, and spiritual dimensions.
Thought Paradigms
A thought paradigm can be defined as a way of understanding, interpreting, and structuring reality or specific aspects of the world from a given mindset, system, or pattern. It can be seen as a set of beliefs, assumptions, and methods that guide individuals or groups' thinking and decision-making in a particular area. The thought paradigm functions as a mental framework or filter through which we view and interpret information, influencing our actions and perspectives.
Here are some central features of thought paradigms:
Foundations for understanding: A thought paradigm provides fundamental principles or worldviews for how we understand the world, ourselves, and others. It can be influenced by culture, history, education, and experience.
Structure and rules: Thought paradigms often consist of underlying structures or rules that define what is considered "correct" thinking and which methods are used to solve problems or analyze phenomena.
Change and development: Paradigms can change over time as new insights, inventions, or philosophies question and redefine old beliefs. Thomas Kuhn, a philosopher of science, described in his book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions how scientific paradigms can shift in radical "scientific revolutions."
Limitations and opportunities: A thought paradigm can both open up new possibilities for understanding and innovation, but also limit thinking by creating a certain framework or set of norms that may not be open to alternative perspectives.
Application in different fields: Thought paradigms can be specific to different areas such as philosophy, science, politics, psychology, or religious belief. Each field can develop its own thought paradigms that guide how questions about truth, reality, ethics, and other fundamental topics are approached.
Brief History of Thought Paradigms
The history of thought paradigms is deeply rooted in humanity's quest to understand the world around us, and this quest has often manifested itself through religions, philosophical systems, and scientific theories. From the earliest religious and mythological beliefs to today's modern science and philosophical thought systems, thought paradigms have undergone significant shifts. In ancient societies, religion was the dominant model of thought that explained all aspects of life and nature. Gods, spirits, and cosmic forces were central to the understanding of the universe and humanity's place within it. These religious paradigms were not just belief systems but also entire social structures that governed morals, politics, and science. For example, in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Mesopotamia, religion and natural science were deeply intertwined, where gods were associated with weather phenomena, the sea, the earth, and the cycles of life.
Over time, philosophy in ancient Greece began offering alternative paradigms that challenged these religious explanations. Philosophers like Plato and Aristotle sought answers to existential questions through logic and observation, and their ideas laid the foundations for Western science and philosophy. Here, a divide began to form between the religious and the rational mindset, where philosophical paradigms started to define the world without relying on religious narratives.
This movement became even more pronounced during the Enlightenment in the 17th and 18th centuries when science, based on empiricism and rational thinking, became the dominant paradigm explaining nature. Meanwhile, during this period, the major world religions—Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism—still influenced many people's worldviews and shaped their understanding of the universe, morality, and humanity's purpose. Religious thought systems have historically acted both as a stabilizing force and as a challenge to scientific and philosophical paradigm shifts, particularly when new theories like evolution and heliocentrism challenged old religious viewpoints.
During the 19th century, with Darwin's theory of evolution and other scientific advancements, as well as the emergence of theories about the origin and development of the universe, thought paradigms underwent a profound shift. The scientific revolution and the influence of Darwinism led to a conflict between science and religion, where many religious beliefs about creation and the origin of life were put to the test. At the same time, religion continued to offer another type of understanding, not in terms of physical reality but rather in questions of morality, meaning, and the purpose of existence.
In the 20th century, new thought paradigms such as quantum mechanics and the theory of relativity radically changed our view of time, space, and matter. These scientific advancements challenged our perceptions of reality in ways no previous theory had done, opening up questions about consciousness, the structure of the universe, and humanity's relationship to it. In this era of rapid scientific and technological advancements, new religious and spiritual movements also emerged, often seeking to reconcile science and spirituality, searching for new ways to understand the universe in relation to the transcendent.
Today, we live in a time where multiple thought paradigms coexist—scientific, philosophical, religious, and spiritual—and often influence each other in complex ways. For many people, it is possible to live in a world where both scientific theories about evolution and the cosmos and religious beliefs about life's purpose and the creation of the universe coexist. Paradigm shifts are no longer only happening through scientific discoveries but also through spiritual and philosophical insights that lead to new ways of seeing life, humanity, and our relationship to the world and the divine.
Theory of everything (TOE)
Some thought paradigms are called Theory of Everything (TOE). The term Theory of Everything (TOE) refers to a hypothetical, all-encompassing scientific theory that could explain all physical and non-physical phenomena in the universe in a unified way. The goal of a TOE is to unite or refute existing theories within physics and explain the fundamental laws of nature under a single framework. Currently, there are several theories that explain different aspects of the universe, but none of them provide a complete and unified picture. One of the greatest goals of physics today is to find a theory that can either unify or refute the widely accepted theory of relativity, which explains gravity and how the universe works, and quantum mechanics, which describes the microscopic worlds of particles and energies. A Theory of Everything would not only revolutionize our understanding of physics and the universe but would also have profound philosophical and metaphysical consequences. If we can understand all the forces of nature within a unified framework, it could also offer us a new perspective on the purpose of life, the place of the cosmos, and our own existential questions. Thus, the pursuit of a TOE in physics is not just a technical challenge but also a cross-boundary endeavor to understand the most fundamental aspects of our reality.
The Need for a New Comprehensive TOE
In today's world, we are confronted with the question of humanity's future. Will we continue as a species, or are we facing self-destructive forces that could destroy our civilization? Climate change, resource management, war, and technological risks such as artificial intelligence and genetic manipulation are just some of the global challenges we face. Many of these problems are linked to a lack of understanding of the underlying principles that govern the world. A TOE could help create a more sustainable and responsible future by providing us with a deeper understanding of the systems that govern both our planet and our societies. By understanding the universe as an interconnected system, we can better grasp how we impact the world around us and what we can do to live in harmony with it.
Modern science is fragmented into many different disciplines – physics, biology, chemistry, psychology, and so on. Each discipline tends to develop and explain the world within its own framework, often making it difficult to see how these fields are interconnected. A TOE could unite all these areas by offering a common fundamental explanation of how everything from the smallest subatomic particles to the largest cosmic structures functions. For example, a TOE could explain how gravity, electromagnetism, and quantum mechanics work in a context where they are no longer seen as separate phenomena but as aspects of the same underlying principles. One of the most practical benefits of a TOE would be that it could potentially pave the way for technological advances and innovations that we can't even imagine today. When we understand the fundamental principles of how the universe works, we can develop new technologies that we previously could not have conceived, thus overcoming the limitations we currently face. We have already seen how scientific breakthroughs – from electricity to quantum technology – have led to revolutionary changes in society. A TOE could catalyze even greater technological development by opening new avenues for research and experimentation.
A New TOE
Title: How the universe and the realities beyond work
Author: Christer Nylander
Date: December 2023 (first version 2017)
Preface
The human endeavor to understand the cosmos has been a long journey. Every now and then new approaches reach daylight. Nobody can claim they are right, but it is still worthwhile pursuing these approaches. Only by reflecting on the whole picture, its constituent parts and their relation, is it possible to comprehend how the universe and the realities beyond work. Humanity is in an epoch of time where more and more theories and concepts are questioned, for example in politics and economics, but also in physics and cosmology. The eminent English mathematical physicist, mathematician and philosopher of science, Sir Roger Penrose, has expressed deep doubts concerning several aspects of fundamental physics and labeled them fashion, faith and fantasy. Many other physicists have raised questions regarding the rightness of concepts such as the Big Bang, an inflationary universe, curved space, spacetime, time dilation, dark energy, string theory, etcetera. Furthermore, an increasing number of physicists are interested in understanding phenomena such as the observer-expectancy effect and consciousness, as well as time, gravitation, and electromagnetism. This is why the author of this article has embarked on a journey to explore the greater picture. The aim of this paper is to try to describe and explain some of the fundamental principles of the nature of reality, what we normally call metaphysics. The described metaphysical concept rests on extreme simplicity, which minimizes the assumptions, contradictions and paradoxes that permeate theoretical physics today. It also provides a concept of a Creator that is beyond human interpretation and that gives a plausible explanation of how the tangible and intangible can be possible in our universe. This article is radical and subjective with a non-articulated humbleness.
A new metaphysical narrative
What creates?
The first and most important question is to ask if there can be a world without a Creator. Can something emerge from nothing? I think most people don't think so. Although in experiments one can observe changes in what is perceived as empty space, there must be something there unseen that "creates". If we are convinced that everything arises from nothing, we actually believe in miracles and sorcery. I find this option impossible or highly improbable, and choose the existence of a Creator. Next comes the question of what a Creator could be. Most religions are based on a transcendent God who is not bound by physical form but still is a personal God who cares for each individual. This means that the Creator is someone you can pray to and is fully or partly separated from its creations. However, boundaries and subjectivity involve major metaphysical problems when it comes to a Creator. For example:
What is outside the Creator?
Who created the Creator?
How old is the Creator?
Are there any rules that "govern" the Creator?
Is it a she or a he, or?
Does the creator have any values, preferences or feelings?
Many questions arise for which there are no logical answers. The further down the metaphysical rabbit hole one goes, the clearer it becomes that a Creator must be infinite in all respects and lack subjectivity. With that starting point, the metaphysical problems disappear. The only question that remains is how there can be such a Creator. That question is impossible to answer.
An infinite Creator
What characterizes an infinite Creator? Among others:
infinite speed
endless creativity
omnipresence - is everywhere
omniscient - knows everything
contains every thought, concept, feeling, perspective, value, experience, fantasy, machine, color etcetera that could ever exist
has existed forever
What conclusions can be drawn from these characteristics?
time cannot exist since everything is created at time zero
the Creator has created an infinite number of "games" of which "Universes" is only one
all creation is a result of being infinite in all respects, and not a desire
the Creator is not personal
The Creator's game Universes
To understand how the game "Universes" was created and works, we need to use some imagination and logical reasoning. One such argument is that an infinitely intelligent and creative Creator would create a "game" that starts with the highest degree of simplicity and yet has the potential to achieve infinite complexity and be able to continue indefinitely. It is not a subjective choice but an outcome of being infinitely intelligent. The reason for this outcome is that the more complex the start, the greater the limitations later in the "game". The "game" is independently mechanistic, i.e. has cause and effect. Since the "game" is within the Creator, it means that every conceivable "mechanistic" part can have a meaning. This division between the infinite and the finite, creates the possibility for subjectivity, individuality and personality in the "game", while the Creator is infinite in all respects. This solves the "hard problem" of consciousness and shows that it is possible to create a completely independent "world" within an infinite Creator completely automatically. The whole game takes place in the mind of the Creator i.e. there is no material world regardless of how we humans experience it.
So what does a probable start look like that could bring about the Universe as we experience it? First we need to know some vital parts of the Universe, for example longitudinal and transverse waves, electromagnetism, the weak and strong force, gravity, and the toroidal force.
How did the game Universes start?
When an electric wave goes up and down, a magnetic field is generated, and the wave becomes electromagnetic. My version of the game "Universes" started with two electromagnetic waves colliding at a precise angle and bent into two circles.
Because a wave is electromagnetic it will push itself a little to the left or right at each turn, due to repelling (+ to +) charges, making them repeatedly go horizontally 360 degrees around, to make them look like shells. When you were a child, you might have played with metal slinky coils and assembled them into a ring. That's how it looks. Everything in the Universe consists of these shells in an infinite number of sizes and compositions. Thus, a wave and a "particle" are basically the same thing but in different forms. In principle, there is no difference between a universe and a particle, it is just a matter of size. It is more appropriate to call them electromagnetic shells than particles. Why is this start of the "game" universes the most likely? Because two waves colliding is the simplest method to create an infinite number of universes with infinite complexity.
"Breathing" or vibrating shells
When the electromagnetic wave spins around at high speed, that rotation is not completely circular, due to the electromagnetic fields that arise, which gives rise to small regular enlargements and reductions of the shell, i.e vibrations. Every shell vibrates, even our Universe, though our Universe's "breathing cycle" may be billions of years.
Waves permeates the Universe
The vibration of the shell, the spinning gives rise to, creates a huge flow of waves inside and outside the shell. This means that the interior of the shell is constantly being fed with new waves from the main vibrating shell. When these waves collide in the shell with other shells and waves, new shells with different sizes are created that vibrate with different frequencies, sending out waves in all directions. Consequently, the big shell and all shells within it, will be filled with an almost infinite number of foremost longitudinal waves, with different frequencies and amplitudes. Most of the created shells in a universe will only survive a very short time, since they are bombarded with other waves, and collapse.
The ether or the quantum field
The combination of waves, and shells, being created and collapsing, in the shell, is called ether or the quantum field. The ether is constantly replenished with waves from the outer vibrating shell. Planck's constant is a result of this structure. Consequently, every electromagnetic shell with different background radiation has a different Planck's constant, which results in different speeds of light inside each electromagnetic shell or electromagnetic field pattern (EFP).
Infinite number of shells or universes
From the two original vibrating shells that create waves inside and outside the shells, an infinite number of shells or universes, bigger and smaller, are created.
Resonating clusters of EFPs
A number of electromagnetic shells can form a resonating cluster, which can be part of an ever larger clusters, and so on. Resonating clusters are in this paper called electromagnetic field patterns (EFPs). Individual electromagnetic shells can permeate the resonating clusters of EFPs in varying degrees, and vibrate in a varying degree of order or disorder. In addition, the distribution of positive and negative charge can be different in these structures. An example is our planet which contains different layers, from surface to core, with different heat, elements and movements. Some electromagnetic shells are more stable than others. The stability of EFPs depends on several things, for example the background radiation of the universe or gravitation from nearby objects, the resonance of the EFP and underlying EFPs, the complex distribution of their charge, the disorder between electromagnetic shells, the spinning toroidal force, etcetera. Due to the constant flow of colliding waves that can turn shells into waves again, electromagnetic shells and EFPs dissolve or are rearranged over time. EFPs cover the spectra from very dense matter to very low-density invisible fields. An electromagnetic field is always charged, but it can be difficult to measure this charge due to very low electromagnetism or other nearby or inner fields. Electromagnetic fields can exist in different forms: 1) as an electromagnetic shell 2) as electromagnetic shells within electromagnetic shells 3) as a resonating number of electromagnetic shells next to each other 4) as a resonating number of EFPs next to or within each other 5) as resonating conglomerates of resonating EFPs interspersed with shells that have varying degrees of order. The clusters of shells are constantly changing, and become increasingly stable the more they resonate. For example, earth has a frequency of 7.83 hertz, but is built up by trillions of EFPs with other frequencies. An organ, like the heart, would be another example.
The toroidal force
A vortex is created at the top of the shell and swirls to the bottom. It is logical that the vortex is created because the wave moves repeatedly, and at very high speed, sideways 360 degrees. It is something like the vortex bathwater creates when it goes down the drain in a bathtub. Depending on whether the wave goes clockwise or counterclockwise in the shell, I believe that matter or antimatter is created. The shell will have a – charge at the top where the waves enter the shell and the opposite polarity at the bottom, just like the polarities of a battery. The vortex is based on the golden ratio, so there is a relationship between a circle and the golden ratio. That is why the design of nature and even galaxies are based on this ratio.
Space is flat
Space itself cannot be curved, because space does not have specific local properties, but is "homogeneous" in that space is filled with an ether of electromagnetic waves and scattered electromagnetic shells. There is no curved space but what appears to be ditto is caused by gravity.
Forming suns and matter
The scattered electromagnetic shells in the universe begin to attract each other and form clouds of shells or EFPs that are drawn by gravity and the toroidal force increasingly faster together becoming very hot because of the dissonance in the electromagnetic field. That's how suns are formed. When these after billions of years become more resonant they cool down, and become planets. Planets are also formed by EFPs being attracted to each other at a slower rate without a large heat development taking place.
Time does not exist
As previously described, time does not exist because the Creator is infinitely fast. The origin of our concept of time is our planet's yearly cycle around the sun and moon, which we have divided into months, weeks, hours, minutes and seconds, the cycles of the seasons, day and night, sleep and waking, etcetera. Thus, time is a human construct, but in fact, all that exists is an evolving sequence of manifestations caused by the interaction of an almost infinite number of electromagnetic field patterns (EFPs), which has been slowed down from infinite speed, as we perceive it. Based on this explanation, history, present and future can be seen as both chronological and simultaneous phenomena.
Elements are universes within universes
The constant creation of shells within shells gives rise to the elements. Thus, there are no electrons spinning around, for example, a proton, but only shells within shells. Some shells are very stable, such as protons, while others are more unstable. All elements, that is universes, collapse within a certain period of statistical time due to bombardment of waves. We call this the half-life of an element.
The four fundamental forces are caused by electromagnetic shells
The four fundamental forces of our universe (electromagnetism, gravity and weak/strong forces), can in my view, be deduced from how electromagnetic shells behave.
Electromagnetism - The wave is electromagnetic and the electromagnetism is greatly increased when the wave becomes a shell.
Strong force - The strong force is created when the positive and negative polarities of shells are attracted to each other.
Weak force - The weak force comes into existence between shells within shells. The weak force is related to the decay/half-time of an element.
Gravity - Gravity is a combination of all three mentioned fundamental forces, the vortex and perhaps the degree of resonance in the total EFP.
The macro and micro cosmos function according to the same principles
Vibrating shells (universes) not only create an infinite number of smaller shells within each other, but also shells outside the original shell. This means that a universe can be infinitely large or infinitely small, and also that every universe functions according to the same principles. It's just a matter of scale and relativity.
How is reality created?
The game Universes takes place within the Creator. Nothing can be outside because the Creator is infinite in all respects. Every imaginable wave, electromagnetic shell, EFP or aggregate EFP is linked to a meaning in the game. Nothing can happen in the game without meaning. In this regard, it should be pointed out that for example the same object (EFP) can be perceived differently depending on which EFP is "observing", for example through the eyes of a human or a snake. This is because human and snake vision (EFP) are of different complexity. EFPs can represent any parts of speech (noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, determiner and interjection). Some would object and ask how the Creator can be infinite in all respects and at the same time be able to create a game that is defined. Being infinite means not being able to take a single subjective perspective because you carry all perspectives automatically. This means that one cannot feel an individual feeling, perform an individual action or be an individual. But to be infinite in all respects does not mean that the Creator is undifferentiated in every part. The only way to create subjectivity and individuality is through games that have cause and effect, e.g. the game Universes. But again, it is not a desire of the Creator but an automatic process of being infinite. Thus, the game Universes can start with two waves colliding at a particular angle, as described above, and then start a cascade of waves and formations of EFPs representing different parts of speech from the undifferentiated partition of the Creator, creating reality in all its forms.
How does evolution happen?
Evolution occurs when a wave becomes a shell and when the shells electromagnetically group into EFPs. By evolution means every combination of shells becoming EFPs, everything from stones to the most complex creatures, e.g. people. The transition from inorganic to biological is fluid and depends on how complex and mobile the EFPs are. Species and organs do not become visible to our eyes until their EFPs become dense enough. New species thus first exist as invisible EFPs, often descended from other species (EFPs), to suddenly become visible to our eyes.
How does desire and self-reflection happen?
At a certain stage the geometry of EFPs becomes so advanced that it begins "consciously" to desire things and later even to reflect on itself. The EFPs become "tools" with different functions very early on, but become increasingly complex in later phases. Then the entity starts to become a creator of its own and has the capability to escape determinism of 1st degree to a certain point. This means that the entire game has been created at time zero, i.e. it is deterministic, but when the entity has achieved the ability to reflect, determinism in the game itself can begin to be avoided. Determinism and non-determinism can thus coexist, even if the latter is an illusion or relativistic term. The deterministic part of the game means that if nobody in the game uses their consciousness to change it, that is if everyone is totally present in the moment, the game plays itself without interference of the "ego".