The Afterlife Reimagined

Ok, we know what you're thinking... facts, truth... a "real" afterlife? Isn't that a little contradictory? Well, how about we frame it something like, If there is really an afterlife, a soul, here's what we think it would have to look like:

• Actual matter, not some metaphysical, immaterial, spiritual concept.

• Connection to the neurons and synapses that create the conciseness in your brain.

• Answers to why we don't see souls, of the deceased.

A "Real" Afterlife

Dark Matter

So, let's start with the substance part of this issue first... specifically "Dark Matter". Dark matter is a type of physical matter that scientists are just now examining which does not absorb, reflect, or emit light so it cannot be detected by normal observation, yet it exists all around us. Scientists call this material Dark Matter because it can't be seen.

Scientists estimate that Dark Matter accounts for approximately 85% of the matter in the universe. Everything you have ever seen, or touched, all the planets, stars, and everything in and on them only account for 15% of what we know traditionally know as matter. Astonishingly, we know almost nothing about 85% of the matter that permeates the entire universe.

Possible?

Far fetched perhaps, but in some ways no more strange than dark matter, dark energy itself or how our own brain works. You know we might even have a hint. Have you ever wondered when you're dreaming how one part of your brain can make up stories and completely surprise another part of the brain Just remember, we didn't say we were going to prove there was a soul. We said if a soul were to exist, it would need to be real and this scenario could produce just that. Reviewing the criteria for a real soul:

• Actual matter, not some metaphysical, immaterial, spiritual concept. Dark matter is real, dark energy is real.

• Connection to the neurons and synapses that create the conciseness in your brain. Electrical and chemical interaction between the synapses and dark matter copy those connections.

• Answers to why we don't see souls, of the deceased. Dark matter cannot be detected by normal observation.

There may be other scenarios but the reality is again, nobody knows.

Dark Energy

More is unknown than is known. We know how much dark energy there is because we know how it affects the universe's expansion. It turns out that roughly 68% of the "stuff" in the universe is dark energy. Dark matter makes up about 27%. The rest - everything on Earth, everything ever observed with all of our instruments, all normal matter - adds up to less than 5% of the universe. We mention it here because it may be a combination dark matter and dark energy that are the catalyst we need help us transform the chemical and electrical signals in our brain into a soul.

The Brain

So complex, nobody understands completely how it works. We'll just provide an oversimplification here. Key to this discussion are the Neurons, basic brain cells, that have branches called Axons for sending impulses and dendrites for receiving them. Neurons communicate with other cells when stimulated. Communication to other cells may be electrical or chemical. Electrical connections are instant and full-on... like a switch at 100% power. The majority of connections are sent by neurotransmitters, chemicals (calcium) across a synapse or a gap between two nerve cells. The stronger the impulse, the more calcium molecules are sent (and received) to vary the strength of the signal.

There are approximately 86 Billion neurons in the brain and each may have as many as 10,000 synapses or connections to other cells. Picture each thought like a lightening strike across the brain. Connections starting in one place and branching throughout the brain, touching each specialized part triggering sight, sound, memory, emotion, pleasure, pain, all at once... the next thought, another strike... and another.

Most detailed map of the distribution of dark matter in the universe. The bright areas represent highest concentrations, where galaxies form.

Each thought you have creates a completely new pattern, one after the other. Consider what must be going on inside your head right now trying to comprehend the thoughts you're having about dark matter, dark energy, brain function, synapses. Now, consider what the brain must do to process that information, to decide what you think of dark matter, how can something be so huge and yet so inaccessible? How does the brain apply reason to the infinite number of possible patterns in your head? Science can't even give us that answer yet.

Dark Matter Cloning

How the brain works is almost a complete mystery. So, what if one of it other mysteries is its ability to interact with dark matter? What if every time an electrical signal is created, a chemical is fired across a synapse, it makes a mark in dark matter, a dark matter copy of that action. Over time you would have a complete copy of all the synapses in your brain, a model of you, a second conciseness which could be controlled by the dark matter. When you die, the dark matter side of the conciseness would power up and carry on in an entirely different dimension. What's it powered by? Perhaps dark energy, the dark matter itself, something else?