【Yasunori Nomura】What is the True Nature of Quantum Mechanics? The Simulation Hypothesis of This World Revealed by "Superposition" and "Jump-Jump"

Is this “reality” we take for granted truly solid?

The coffee cup before us, the fingers typing on the keyboard, the scenery visible outside the window. All of these can be touched and feel as though they are definitely there. However, viewed from the perspective of “quantum mechanics,” the cutting edge of modern physics, a shocking truth emerges: the world we perceive is nothing more than an illusion, a temporary manifestation of an extremely uncertain “wave of probability.”

This article delves deeply into the true nature of the universe revealed by quantum mechanics, using as its subject the explanatory video by Professor Yasunori Nomura of the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), a leading figure in cutting-edge theoretical physics: ‘[Yasunori Nomura] The True Nature of Quantum Mechanics | This Is How the World Really Moves [SHIFT LIFE ch]’.

“The world is both a wave and a particle.” “All possibilities overlap (parallel worlds).” This phenomenon, akin to a bug in the laws of physics discovered 100 years ago, holds the potential to completely rewrite our “consciousness” and the “equation of existence.” Let us step into the profound abyss of truth, from the universe’s fundamental principles to the essence of humanity.

From the Limits of Classical Physics to the Birth of “Quantum”

In the video, Mr. Nomura explains the historical evolution of physics and the background behind the birth of quantum mechanics in an exceptionally clear manner. “Physics,” the exploration of how this world operates, achieved major advances through Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton in the 17th century.”Classical physics,” epitomized by Newtonian mechanics, calculated and made predictable every movement in the world—from planetary orbits to the parabolic path of a ball—using precise mathematical equations.

In the 19th century, James Clerk Maxwell unified the forces of electricity and magnetism, revealing that light itself is a wave called an “electromagnetic wave.” This led humanity to believe without doubt that it had “fully understood the laws of nature.” The future was calculable, and the past could be deduced by working equations backwards. The world should have run as precisely as clockwork.

However, just before the 20th century, this absolute worldview crumbled. Calculating the energy of light emitted by high-temperature objects revealed a fatal problem: the theories of classical physics and the observed results “did not match at all.”

To resolve this contradiction emerged Max Planck, known as the “father of quantum theory.” He proposed a hypothesis that overturned the common sense of the time: light and energy were not emitted as continuous waves, but only in discrete values (quantum).It was a counterintuitive, “discrete” worldview, akin to a car accelerating not gradually when you press the accelerator, but warping suddenly from 0 km/h to 10 km/h, then to 20 km/h.

Later, Albert Einstein proposed that “light is not a wave but a particle (photon)” (photoelectric effect), and Niels Bohr demonstrated that electrons too could only occupy discrete orbits. Finally, de Broglie proved that “particles of matter, like electrons, also possess wave properties,” leading physics to a decisive conclusion.

“Everything in nature is something called a ‘quantum’. It’s something that behaves like a wave under certain conditions and like a particle under others.”

Yasunori Nomura (from video transcription)

Both wave and particle. This “something that is both and neither” was the quantum, the smallest unit constituting the true nature of the world.

The “Superposition” and Parallel Worlds Revealed by the Double Slit Experiment

The “electron double-slit experiment” most succinctly and beautifully expresses the “intuition-defying strangeness” inherent in quantum mechanics. Let us analyze and contemplate the fundamental structure of the world through this experiment, the most famous in the history of physics and the one that has most perplexed scientists.

The Bizarre Phenomenon of an Electron “Interfering with Its Own Wave”

The structure of the double-slit experiment is remarkably simple. Electrons are fired “one at a time” toward a wall with two narrow slits (gaps), and a screen behind it records where each one arrives.
Electrons are elementary particles, indivisible “particles.” Therefore, firing one electron should cause one point on the screen to light up, and firing another should cause another point to light up. Repeating this many times, what kind of pattern would emerge on the screen?

If electrons were purely “particles,” electrons passing through the left slit and those passing through the right slit would each create a peak, resulting in two distinct lines (two peaks). Surprisingly, however, what gradually emerges on the screen is an “interference pattern” created by waves colliding.

Wave interference patterns arise when waves emerging from the two slits reinforce or cancel each other out.Yet in the experiment, electrons are fired “one at a time.” This means it is absolutely impossible for them to collide with other electrons and interfere. Nevertheless, the fact that interference patterns form can only be physically explained by the idea that “a single, individual electron simultaneously passes through both slits, interferes with itself as a wave, and only becomes a definite particle upon reaching the screen.“

The World as “Undetermined Probability” and the Many-Worlds Interpretation

This phenomenon fundamentally shatters our common sense. The electron is not “here” or “there”; until observed, it exists as a fuzzy “superposition of probability waves” throughout space, possessing both the “probability of passing through the right slit” and the “probability of passing through the left slit.”

“The world where it went through the top and the world where it went through the bottom both exist probabilistically, overlapping and influencing each other, which ultimately produces this pattern.”

Yasunori Nomura (from video transcription)

This is also one origin of the “Many-Worlds Interpretation (parallel worlds)” in quantum mechanics. The instant an electron is fired, the world branches into “the world where it passed through the right slit” and “the world where it passed through the left slit,” both continuing to exist in parallel. The result of these parallel worlds interfering with each other manifests as the interference pattern in our world.What is often thought of as mere fantasy confined to science fiction movies is, in the microscopic quantum world, nothing more than a “real physical phenomenon” observed daily in laboratories.

“Existence” is merely information that collapses upon observation.

The profound truth derived from this is that “our world may be closer to a hologram of information without substance.“

If the entire universe is constructed from a quantum superposition state, the world does not exist as predetermined matter (particles), but only as a mass of “infinite possibilities (probabilities)”. It resembles a video game world where areas unseen by the player are not rendered and exist only as data.Only when
an electron hits the screen and is “observed” does the probability wave collapse, forming a physical image that “was here.” In other words, it is not matter that creates the universe; it is “observation (information)” that determines the existence of matter.

Why don’t we perceive “parallel worlds”?

Having read this far, you might wonder: “If this world is a wave, a parallel universe where all possibilities overlap, why don’t I sense worlds where my body splits into duplicates or floats in the sky?” Here lies a profound mechanism involving the limits of human perception and the disconnect between physical layers.

The Boundary Between Macro and Micro (Decoherence)

In the video, Professor Nomura provides a very clear physical answer to this question: “Because we are an incredibly vast collection of particles.“

For a single electron, the probability of different states overlapping and interfering remains high. However, as the number increases to two, three, and more, the probability that all constituent particles will maintain wave properties perfectly in sync and interfere together decreases sharply.For a macroscopic (giant) object like a human, composed of approximately 10²⁷ atoms (1000𥝱 atoms), the probability that all these atoms harmoniously maintain a superposition state and interfere with their counterparts in another parallel world becomes “effectively zero.“ In physics
, this is called “quantum decoherence (loss of wave interference properties).”The larger the object, the more it constantly collides with its surroundings—light, air molecules, and so on (continuously being observed)—causing the probability wave to collapse into a single, unique reality in an instant.

Consciousness as an Anchor and the “Fixed Reality”

Even if we cannot perceive interference between parallel worlds due to our large physical mass and number of particles, the “overall structure” of the universe—where worlds branch and countless possibilities overlap—remains unchanged according to quantum theory. When you decide to “go right,” the universe of “you who went left” certainly exists and runs parallel according to physical laws. However, because you are a massive macroscopic object, any interaction between the two is completely severed.

This raises a profound question: Why, then, does my consciousness experience only this “current reality (the world where I went right)” among the infinitely branched possibilities?

To experience just one specific branch among the countless parallel worlds, a “perspective as an observer” is necessary. Human “consciousness” may be the anchor that casts into the infinitely expanding sea of probability, securing and tethering a fixed reality.Our perception of “continuous time” and “solid matter” in daily life is an illusion created precisely because our brains and biological tissues (macroscopic objects) function as a “giant observation device,” constantly interacting with the environment and continuously narrowing down possibilities.

The “world” is within you

In the Newtonian worldview of classical physics, the picture was one of “a tiny human part placed inside a vast empty box called the universe.” However, the truth revealed by quantum mechanics flips this upside down.
“The universe has no fixed state; the material world only manifests in the instant of human observation (or interaction with the environment).
“ This is the very concept of “form is emptiness” (shiki soku ze ku = all matter has no inherent substance and is empty) found in Eastern philosophy and Buddhism. You are not seeing the world; you are drawing it. A universe without consciousness or the act of observation is merely a floating equation of probabilities.

The Overlap Between Consciousness Rewriting Reality and “Holographic Cosmology”

Professor Nomura’s explanation of “the true nature of quantum mechanics”—that the fundamental essence of this universe is not fixed matter, but overlapping probability waves existing as parallel worlds—transcends the boundaries of physics and directly connects to fundamental questions about human “consciousness” and the “meaning of life’s existence.”Here, let us delve deeper into the abyss of truth by intersecting with other cutting-edge theories and philosophies previously explored on Insight Dot.

Mathematics Begins to Prove the Link: “Consciousness = Source of the Universe”

The property in quantum mechanics where “observation” determines reality eerily aligns with the mathematical proof approach, as demonstrated by recent Swedish research, suggesting “consciousness is the source of the universe.“

If matter existed first and consciousness (life) emerged later, it would be impossible to explain why matter exists in a state of probability waves. The cosmic paradox of “existing without substance” fits perfectly when we consider that “first, ‘consciousness (a network of observers)’ existed, and it was through this consciousness observing the simulation space called the universe that matter (wave collapse) was subsequently drawn.”Our personal consciousness may be nothing more than a peripheral “observation probe” that the great will of the universe has separated to experience itself.

Epigenetics and “Rewriting the Past from the Present”

Furthermore, quantum superposition holds deep relevance to the rewriting of DNA by consciousness in epigenetics, the cutting edge of genetics.

DNA is not an absolute, unchanging blueprint. The switches determining which genes are turned on and which are turned off are constantly toggled by the environment and the “state of consciousness” (stress, beliefs, emotions). Even chemical reactions and molecular behavior at the cellular level, when zoomed in to the smallest scale, exist in a world governed by quantum mechanics.

When humans hold strong beliefs or images (the act of observation), specific “probability waves” are selected within the brain’s synapses and the molecular networks inside cells, causing the cells to undergo physical transformation. It can be described as a state where one spontaneously selects (shifts) the probability of their own physical body from a “parallel world of illness” to a “parallel world of health.”Quantum mechanics can serve as the theoretical foundation that validates spiritual phenomena like the law of attraction and miraculous healing as solid physical mechanisms.

Holographic Cosmology and Buddhism’s “Emptiness”

Furthermore, the “holographic principle” (the theory that the universe is a projection of information recorded on a lower-dimensional boundary surface), currently debated at the forefront of modern physics where Professor Nomura also belongs, powerfully supports quantum mechanics’ “non-substantiality.”

As seen in the double-slit experiment, if an electron exists in a state of “nowhere and everywhere” until it arrives, then the very three-dimensional space we call “reality” might be nothing more than an image projected through our hologram projector (the brain) from vast information (probability data) engraved on a two-dimensional plane at the edge of the universe.

This converges precisely on the truth that both quantum mechanics and Buddhism lead to: “The universe is a hologram.“What Buddha attained through meditation 2,500 years ago—the realization that “form is emptiness” (all phenomena arise conditionally and have no inherent substance)—humanity is finally beginning to catch up to scientifically, using cutting-edge giant accelerators and supercomputers. Physics is now approaching a singularity where it merges with religion and philosophy.

Quantum Computers and “The Day Humanity Approaches God”

The profound philosophy of quantum mechanics is no longer confined to laboratory debates. Humanity is now attempting to directly apply the properties of “superposition” and “parallel worlds” to technology. That is the “quantum computer.“

Technology that harnesses infinite parallel worlds as computational resources

Conventional supercomputers handle bits that can represent only one of two states: “0” or “1”. However, the “quantum bits (qubits)” used by quantum computers perform calculations while maintaining a state of superposition where they are “both 0 and 1”.In other words, rather than checking each path one by one when solving a maze, they take the astonishing approach of “branching all paths into parallel worlds and advancing through them simultaneously, then extracting only the correct route through interference.” As
Professor Nomura points out, the disruptive speed at which they solve calculations that would take a conventional supercomputer 100,000 years in just tens of seconds is nothing short of “pulling computational resources from another parallel universe.”

From “Observers” to “Editors” of the World

The practical application of quantum computers and our entry into a world where cryptography loses meaning signifies more than just technological evolution. It means humanity has entered a stage where we can directly access the universe’s source code (fundamental laws) and artificially manipulate probability waves.
Until now, we could only observe and marvel at the strange phenomena of quantum mechanics from the outside. But from now on, we enter a phase where we control quantum parallel states, design the behavior of matter at the molecular and atomic levels (discovering new drugs and developing new materials), and begin to “edit” the world.

The Realistic Possibility of the Simulation Hypothesis

Contemplating the truths of quantum mechanics and the evolution of quantum computers leads to an ultimate insight: the hypothesis that “this world itself might be a simulated space computed by a super-advanced quantum computer.
“ The property that “it exists as a probability wave when unobserved and is rendered as matter only upon observation” aligns perfectly with a computational trick (lazy evaluation) designed
to minimize computational load.Having grasped quantum principles and begun harnessing them as computational resources, humanity may now be approaching a turning point where we realize we ourselves are part of the algorithm within a simulated universe run by some entity.

Living with a Quantum Worldview

What emerged from delving deeper into the world of quantum mechanics through Mr. Yasunori Nomura’s explanations was not merely specialized, complex equations. It was a profound hope: “how fluid and free the structure of the reality we live in truly is.”

If the world were like Newtonian mechanics, where “future outcomes are absolutely determined by past causes (determinism),” our lives would be nothing more than inorganic machine parts running on predetermined tracks. Past failures and present misfortunes would all be inescapable fate.

But quantum mechanics completely refuted this. The world is discontinuous; there is no “absolute.” Everything is a superposition of probabilities. The future does not necessarily lie along an extension of the past. At the moment of observation (your decisions and actions), one reality is selected from an infinite wave of possibilities, and the world materializes.

The “Quantum Shift” as Action

How should we apply this profound insight from quantum mechanics to our daily lives (as our next action)?

• Stop “classical mechanical thinking” trapped in
  the past Past failures do not determine who you are in the next instant. Quantum particles warp in leaps. At the fundamental level of physics, shifting instantly into a parallel world as a different person is permitted, rather than gradual growth. Do not fix your self-image; focus instead on “how you observe (how you perceive) right now.”
• Know that the world awaits your “observation
  “ Reality unobserved is merely a fog of probabilities. Only when you direct your awareness, take action, and collide with events does the path solidify into firm ground. “Anxiety” is the state of fearing countless future waves that haven’t yet contracted. Take that first step, observe the world, and solidify reality.
• Train your consciousness as an “anchor” In
  this modern age of overwhelming information, countless choices (parallel worlds) are constantly presented. Without your own solid “consciousness” and “beliefs,” your reality will be collapsed by others’ observations. Through meditation and introspection, strongly recognize that you yourself are the observer who determines the world.

The world is far more ambiguous and terrifyingly free than you imagine. As Yasunori Nomura states, this strange cosmic rule—quantum mechanics—discovered by physicists a century ago is now evolving into the “operating system of life” that fundamentally transforms each of our very ways of living.