File under "Duh".

Newsweek ran an article about Dr. Eben Alexander and his book "The Science of Heaven" chronicling his Near Death Experience (NDE). In a recent article he responded to criticism of his claims with the following observation:

"The very nonlocal features of consciousness, so well supported in Irreducible Mind and in Pim van Lommel’s wonderful book Consciousness Beyond Life, are the resounding evidence that consciousness itself is a quantum phenomenon."

This may seem extraordinary to some, but there has been speculation in physics for some time that consciousness plays an important role in Quantum Mechanics dating back to Heisenberg's uncertainty principle. The influence of consciousness ranges from classic physics experiment's to research in parapsychology that the bias of the experimenter affects the outcome of the experiment. It's nothing new.

What was shocking to me was the cynicism and vitriol that greeted Dr. Alexander's clinical chronicle of his NDE. His vision of the afterlife was a highly romantic vision- which may be due to his previous expectations, but is similar to what thousands of people have reported in their NDE's. It's not wise to criticize things you don't understand.

There have been much study of the subject and I have spoken to a friend who has had a NDE, who remembers it quite clearly. We should try to keep an open mind about such things. After all, we are all going to face such a journey ourselves on day.