Thomas S. Kuhn's classic book is now available with a new index.

Science is always presupposing some basic concepts that are held to be useful. These absolute presuppositions (Collingwood) are rarely debated and form the framework for what has been termed paradigm by Kuhn. Our currently accepted scientific model is predicated on a set of presuppositions that have difficulty accommodating holistic structures and relationships and are not geared towards incorporating non-local correlations. Since the theoretical models we hold also determine what we perceive and take as scientifically viable, it is important to look (...) for an alternative model that can deal with holistic relationships. One approach is to generalise algebraic quantum theory, which is an inherently holistic framework, into a generic model. Relaxing some restrictions and definitions from quantum theory proper yields an axiomatic framework that can be applied to any type of system. Most importantly, it keeps the core of the quantum theoretical formalism. It is capable of handling complementary observables, i.e. descriptors which are non-commuting, incompatible and yet collectively required to fully describe certain situations. It also predicts a generalised form of non-local correlations that in quantum theory are known as entanglement. This generalised version is not quantum entanglement but an analogue form of holistic, non-local connectedness of elements within systems, predicted to occur whenever elements within systems are described by observables which are complementary to the description of the whole system. While a considerable body of circumstantial evidence supports the plausibility of the model, we are not yet in a position to use it for clear cut predictions that could be experimentally falsified. The series of papers offered in this special issue are the beginning of what we hope will become a rich scientific debate. (shrink)

Benveniste’s experiments (also known as “memory of water” or “digital biology” experiments) remain unresolved. In some research areas, which have in common the description of cognition mechanisms and information processing, quantum-like statistical models have been proposed to address problems that were “paradoxical” in a classical frame. Therefore, the outcomes of the cognitive state of the experimenter were calculated for a series of Benveniste’s experiments using a quantum-like statistical model (i.e. a model inspired by quantum physics and taking into consideration superposition (...) of quantum states, non-commutable observables, and contextuality). Not only were the probabilities of “success” and “failure” of the experiments modeled according to their context, but the emergence of a signal from background was also taken into account. For the first time, a formal framework devoid of any reference to “memory of water” or “digital biology” describes all the characteristics of these disputed results. In particular, the difficulties encountered by Benveniste (reproducibility of the experiments, disturbances after blinding) are simply explained in this model without additional ad hoc hypotheses. It is thus proposed that we see Benveniste’s experiments as the result of quantum-like probability interferences of cognitive states. Keywords: Memory of water—quantum cognition—quantum-like probabilities—entanglement—experimenter effect—contextuality —nonlocal interactions. (shrink)