The experiment could have caused the entanglement of two living beings | MNN

Quantum entanglement is a ghostly phenomenon whereby two particles – say photons – mysteriously wrap, so that changes in the states of one particle occur simultaneously in the other, even if the two particles are separated by great distances. Einstein was so baffled by the phenomenon that he termed it "phantasmagoric". Although quantum entanglement has definitely become a real phenomenon, scientists still do not really understand how to understand it.

One of the reasons why entanglement is probably so difficult to grasp is that the phenomenon is supposed to occur only at the quantum level, with fundamental particles and the like. This should not happen at the macro level of our daily experience. Chairs and tables never mix with chance. Living beings either. Then again …

Scientists recently examined a previous study of 2016 on photosynthetic bacteria with green sulfur. The experiment was not designed to look for quantum interactions; It has been designed to study how photosynthetic organisms interact with light and absorbs light that bounces between mirrors. But in the second search, the scientists noticed something funny. The bacterium appears as if it got entangled in the light that exploded between them, reports Scientific American.

"Our models show that this recorded phenomenon is a signature of the entanglement of light and certain degrees of freedom within the bacteria," said quantum physicist Chiara Marletto, who oversaw the new analysis.

Basically, it appears that some photons of the experiment struck and lacked both photosynthetic molecules in the bacterium. This kind of simultaneous behavior is what you expect to see if there is entanglement.

This is a surprising and disconcerting possibility. If confirmed, this would be the first time that a form of life would work according to quantum principles and open a whole box of theoretical verses. Could the properties of quantum mechanics play in the biological world? Could natural selection offer living systems the means to naturally exploit quantum phenomena? And if so, how could this change our understanding of biological processes?

Of course, all this is a very big "if" at the moment. This experiment, while convincing, was not really designed to test the quantum phenomenon, and the design has flaws if we really want to test a quantum hypothesis. Researchers will have to return to the drawing board with a new goal in mind. Until then, all conclusions are hypothetical at best. But this could also be the beginning of a whole new way to look at how micro and macro worlds interact, and how they are related.

In relation with MNN:

The experience may have caused the entanglement of two living things

If verified, this will be the first proof that life forms can work in the quantum domain.