Vitalism and Quantum Mechanics

As demonstrated at the conclusion of the preceding chapter, the German natural philosopher Bernard Bavink posited that vitalism would be rejuvenated through the nascent field of quantum mechanics. His prediction proved accurate. Quantum mechanics emerged at the turn of the twentieth century, marked by Max Planck’s research on black-body radiation and Albert Einstein’s studies on the photoelectric effect. Quantum mechanics did not fully flourish until the 1920s, when Erwin Schrödinger, Niels Bohr, and others redefined its foundations. Now, this chapter concentrates on exploring the speculative relationship between vitalism and quantum mechanics, which did not surface until after quantum mechanics had become well-established. Indeed, beginning in the 1920s, several physicists sought “insights” from quantum mechanics to better comprehend the nature of life (Stent, 1998; McKaughan, 2005; Domondon, 2006; Joaquim et al., 2015; Van Strien, 2022). This chapter examines the quantum speculations about life made by three distinguished physicists—Erwin Schrödinger, Pascal Jordan, and Niels Bohr—and a contemporary biologist, Ralph Lillie. The chapter concludes with remarks on the fundamental logic underlying speculations about life from the perspective of quantum mechanics.