Nature Loves To Hide: Quantum Physics and the Nature of Reality, a Western Perspective

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Great intro to quantum physics for the layperson. And fascinating work in relating quantum to spirituality. To me this book is a gem.

One could be forgiven for assuming that this was yet another book from the popularising-of-science stable written to assuage the thirst for them by the general public. But I must ask Malin for that forgiveness. This book is the most lucid account of the significance and implications of quantum theory written to date. Unlike Hawking’sbook in which he was instructed not to make use of equations as each one costs so many readers (and yet still managing to write a text that few understand),

Malin never has a use for them because he writes as one dedicated to elucidation. He proceeds step by step, constantly summing up the main points. There is no obfuscation and no mystery. We are left in no doubt with regard to meaning, and the problems that remain to be solved are clearly outlined. Malin traces the history of quantum theory through the spirit of philosophy that imbues it. The founders of quantum theory did not work out these ideas as though they were merely puzzling phenomena. They were enthused by a sense of philosophical curiosity and dissatisfaction. Were it not for this, we may still be trying to work out the implications of the very small in a neo-Newtonian context. It is this emphasis on the philosophical that is contingent on the scientific that is the real subject here. The front cover reads “Quantum Physics and the Nature of Reality”, but these are not synonymous terms. Malin makes it clear that the former is an aspect of the latter, while philosophy already contains the perspective of the former as an intrinsic feature. This is clear from the ideas of Plato and Plotinus, but Malin emphasises their influence on another philosopher, Alfred North Whitehead. This is significant, because Whitehead is almost forgotten as a major figure, and yet there is not a statement in quantum physics that is not already prefigured in his philosophy. It is based on the relations between the temporal and the non-temporal, or eternal objects. Noting the dislike for “eternal objects” as a concept, Whitehead suggests that one use the idea of potential instead, an idea that is crucial to understanding quantum collapse. It is the relationship between the potential and the actual that is the stuff of quantum theory, and yet in Whitehead these are explored as a matter of course. The relationship between Whitehead’s philosophy and quantum physics is the major contribution that Malin makes in the pursuit of the paradigm shift that currently evades us. Science, as Malin points out, is restricted in its relevance by its objectivating nature, which excludes the subject of cognizance from its domain of relevance. It is for this reason that reality in a scientific treatment is essentially inert. Malin points this out, quoting from Heisenberg, one of the leading figures in quantum theory. It is a great pity that these philosophical outpourings from scientists themselves are not more openly displayed, for we live in an age that assumes that all of reality can be captivated in a scientific concept. A paradigm shift, as Malin points out, must extend beyond the bounds of science since these exclude the very essence of that which defines the new paradigm. It is a rare thing these days to hear a scientist speaking so boldly concerning the limitations of their work, compared with Stephen Hawking, say, who through science hopes to know the mind of God, while assuming that philosophy ended with Wittgenstein. Perhaps if he had read Whitehead, he may have concluded differently. However, (and this `however’ is intended as constructive criticism to help point the way into the new paradigm), Malin underestimates the significance of emotion as Whitehead employs it in his philosophy. He does not quote Whitehead on the subject, but a third party who interprets it: Victor Lowe is right, I believe, when he warns us of “the danger of reading too much into the term `feeling’…” Feeling is the relationship between the one who feels and that which is felt. This is not Whitehead’s thought, but Lowe’s. For Whitehead, the significance of emotion is central and crucial. Whitehead’s actual words are: “It is an essential doctrine in the philosophy of organism, that the primary function of a proposition is to be relevant as a lure for feeling.” It is this feeling that is the defining quality of Whitehead’s philosophy. Without it, organism becomes a “system”, to be understood in the traditional way that excludes the very thing that is the focus of attention for Whitehead. To reduce it to the terms of a relationship is to convert it into a mathematical equation and so negate the very principle that Malin is trying to introduce. In some ways, this is understandable, for to move towards the new paradigm requires the old to be discarded. This is happening in this book very slowly, but nonetheless it is moving. Consequently, in his chapter “Nature Alive”, Malin writes:
If the universe is alive, emotions may well have cosmological significance. What he should be writing is "The universe is alive, and emotions do indeed have cosmological significance". To take this step forward, and speak with such a confidence that removes the doubt from it is a huge undertaking. Whitehead knew this and said so. Rationalism is an adventure in the clarification of thought, progressive and never final. But it is an adventure in which even partial success has importance.

Malin has had that partial success with this book, for no-one has come as close to this convergence between philosophy and science as he. I hope he will continue the adventure and find the courage to intuit the next step and involve himself more fully. Most certainly this is one of the few books you will read that does not feel finished. It is on an edge of discovery. It points somewhere. It points somehow. Read it!

 

This is an excellent book on the interface of science and philosophy. Ever since Capra’s immensely successful ‘The Tao of Physics’, there has been widespread interest in the connections between modern theoretical physics and eastern religion. While opening many minds to a deeper sense of spirituality, this also may have helped to close many minds to the possibilities of a genuine Western spirituality. In this fascinating and readable book, Professor Malin succeeds in two important respects: First, through his clear exposition, and the use of charming dialogues, he brings the challenging and mind-altering ideas of modern physics within the reach of just about anyone. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, he has contributed to the reinvigoration of our Western philosophical tradition by bringing the ideas of Plato, Plotinus, and Whitehead, among others, back into the forefront, and he has shown how these great thinkers have foreseen our contemporary scientific achievements, and can imbue them with sense and meaning.

 

The book provides a key that unlocks a doorway between science’s world of objects and philosophy’s world of ideas. The scientist might be disappointed that the book is not scientific enough and too philosophical. The philosopher might be disappointed that the book is too scientific and not philosophical enough. This book however is about neither science nor philosophy but a dialog that connects and relates the two worlds.