Could This Be A Valid Theory For THE AFTERLIFE?

Question

I pretty much fall into a scientific theory on things, as after all science has been the only (i use this word loosely) ideology that allows itself to be and actually encourages challenges to its theories.

Ok this theory is mine and is only a thought experiment that for me using science may explain the phenomenon of a percieved afterlife, and any extra thought on it would be greatly appreciated..

Background to my theory.

It is accepted that nothing is truely destroyed but just changes form, when you burn coal it is broken down into parts and if you're to gather all these parts it would weigh the same as it did before it was burnt. (which afterall is just a chemical reaction)

It has been noted that when an individual dies they loose aproximately 21 grams in weight......Where does this go?

Wormholes are a part of everyday life but are so smalll they exist in atoms.

Scientific research strongly suggests that so many dimensions exist that every possibile type of universe may actually exist, e.g a universe of pure energy.

Taking these scientific theories and noted occurances together here is my theory in a nutshell.

When you die the 21 grams is the energy released from your body (maybe soul) and as pure energy can be squeezed into a very small space it can travel through a wormhole in an atom to another dimension of pure energy.

This maybe the tunnel of white light many people claimed to have seen and could be the answer to the afterlife....I don't know if these is true as i have just pulled together my limited scientific knowledge and my natural human curiosity about death and this is the only thoery that seems to work without an all powerfull supernatural entity.

What Ya'll Think???

Answer 1

"when you burn coal it is broken down into parts and if you're to gather all these parts it would weigh the same as it did before it was burnt"

No they wouldn't, the procucts of the reaction would weigh less, and the difference is the amount of energy released during the reaction. E = mc^2, look it up.

"It has been noted that when an individual dies they loose aproximately 21 grams in weight."

A scientist over 100 years did measure this, however from snopes, "MacDougall's results were flawed because the methodology used to harvest them was suspect, the sample size far too small, and the ability to measure changes in weight imprecise." See the source.

"Wormholes are a part of everyday life but are so smalll they exist in atoms."

No wormhole has ever been detected, and it has been theorised that without some negative energy to hold the neck of it open, it would instantly collapse into two black holes. To date we have never detected any negative energy either.

These are just a few points from your post where you have taken conjecture and outright fallacies and assumed them to be true. I could further pick your post apart but instead I will simply say that it doesn't have any substance and is complete flim flam.

Answer 2

Yes we do become something 'else'.

Basically what happens is all of what we are rots into the ground or is eaten.

So if we rot and become absorbed by the ground what we are, our nutrients are absorbed. This allows plants to grow, which in turn get eaten and allow animals to grow up the food chain.

When we're eaten by Detritus Feeders (Bacteria etc.) The nutrients we give to them allow them to survive and they are consumed by their own predators again up the food chain.

In both cases where it reaches the top of the food chain the animal will die and rot giving nutrients back to the ground and Detritus Feeders. It's a never ending cycle which allows life to keep going and going.

So, whilst your theory was pretty good, we don't go through some chemical reaction and become something in the afterlife. If this was true eventually no life would live on Earth. Instead we give ourselves back to the Environment so something else can live.

I suppose thats an afterlife in itself? A sort of reincarnation?

Answer 3

That is a really good theory, and if anyone says its stupid its because they have never looked into the afterlife and think it isn't true. I'm no expert on science, so some of that you said made no sense to me, but its just a matter of putting the right pieces together to form a theory. You may be right that the 21 grams could be our soul going to heaven/h**l, it could even be searching for a new life to begin, and in each life the soul will grow wiser and stronger and thats how people achieve things.

Answer 4

maybe.. i really hope that there is something - the thought of death being the end really scares me personally

Answer 5

No

Answer 6

Your theory sounds way more plausible to me than becoming an angel and spending eternity playing a harp atop the clouds.  However, there still could be an all-powerful, all-knowing supernatural entity.

Answer 7

that is very interesting.... yes that might b possible. so ur saying that when a person dies, their soul squeezes through a wormhole that could possibly take them to heaven or the afterlife (based on religion...)? that is genius!

Answer 8

I haven't settled on any belief about what happens after death or whether we continue in some form.  Yours is an interesting theory, whether it is realistic or not, I don't know.

Answer 9

i think the 21 grams are just bodily fluids which no longer function because your, well dead. so if my bodily fluids went travelling in a wormhole to another dimension i would find it odd. lol i think that your theory is much better than the 'clouds of heaven' one and any theory is a valid theory because no one will ever be able to prove what really happens. furthermore i really really hope its not just all over when you die. i think about it almost every night and wonder what actually happens? i wish i knew because life is kinda short and for you to just die after it would be so weird. also even though i dont believe in god or anything religious related as far as i know, i do think there is 'something more'. sometimes i just feel there is something else in the room. its really weird and sometimes scares me sometimes makes me feel good. i dont know. it is all so confusing!! maybe i am just paranoid.

Answer 10

You may be on the right track. The black holes are not even necessary. Our eyes only see things in 3 dimensions because we are in a 3 D world. We cannot see anything above that however we do know that there are dimensions way beyond the 3D. Any dimension 4D (time/space) and above, can enter any dimension less, 3D 2D and so on without any barriers. A 4D being or above could enter this one, bring it into the 4th dimension, do surgery or whatever they would like without the confines of our form of matter. Being energy without solid form they could come in and out without a problem. See book called Hyperspace by author Kaku. One thought is that spirits, ghosts, or whatever are really just our spirits entering another dimension. We would not usually see them but may feel the forces around and within them such as wind, heat, and so on. If you were to look at one between dimensions, half in and out, you would only see the part that is in the 3D space. The other would not physically exist for you. Of course there are many other factors such as alternate realities and so coexisting worlds, and so on. That is a whole different but interesting concept which I also beleive fully in. We cannot see it because many dimensions are on a sub atomic level and some so small that our eyes may never see no matter how strong our microscope is. Our eyes would have to be altered and I do not think that would be a good idea.  

Answer 11

Possible in your way. Good idea. But in Quantum Physics, everything may not be real.

Answer 12

Nope.

First off, where do you get that 21 grams idea from? That is an old myth, long, long since debunked! And energy is not measured in grams! If 21 grams of anything was converted into energy in an instant, it would be rather noticable! E=mc^2 - do the maths!

Second, the laws of thermodynamics you refer to are mis-applied here; they only apply to a closed system.

Second, the white light motif is more simply explained in prozaic terms, birth trauma recall, or simple stimulation of the optic centres of the dying brain. Applying Occam's razor, that is a more likey explanation than your wormhole.  (What do you mean 'pure energy' btw? as opposed to what? impure energy?)  

Answer 13

Well, as a psychology major, this truly does spark my interest.  First, there is no proven scientific or religous theory on the mind/body connection.  With that being said it is hard to tell if the mind is actually "attached" to the body or if it is independant of the body, yet resides with in it.  We know that the brain is very important for the way people think such as men vs. women... but we also know that the brain is responsible for behavioral patterns...  

Your theory is quite interesting... and it is fair to say that it sounds well thought out and is possible... due to the lack of information that proves your theory wrong.  Very interesting!

Answer 14

I thought that the "21 grams" was of gas in your body escaping when your muscles relax. If you honestly want to scientifically try to prove your theory, which you are welcome to do, then start by killing a pig and weighing it before and after, measuring the amount of gas in the body. Then try liquids, bacteria etc.. for all the possible reasons. As we can't prove there are other universe yet, it will still remain a theory, but it would become a proved theory, but not fact.

Good Luck with you theory.

Answer 15

I think "losing 21 grams" is a myth. "It has been noted" is not a reliable reference.

That said, consider that the body does operate on electro-chemical energy, and the energy present in the brain must be the seat of the consciousness. This means that there is a simple quantity of electro-chemical energy that is a component of our individual identity, helping to form our personality and consciousness. This quantity of energy does not simply disappear when we "die". It must need to difuse from this point of concentration (the body, brain) following natural laws.

So, since it is present when the mechanical part of the body ceases functioning, are we still conscious (or self aware) until it dissipates? And (here is your answer) if it were to not dissipate by some means, would it be a repository for the consciousness (or self, or "spirit") of the dead body? If it were able to maintain its integrity, might it not continue on, "live on" in some form?

The worm hole theory is unrealistic. But a scientific explanation of what happens to this finite, theoretically measurable and observable chunk of energy would be interesting.

Answer 16

Firstly when someone dies they lose more than 21 grams when they die, however the 21 grams is how much is lost when everything has been taken into account. As far as i know this has not been proved. There is however one problem with your theory about losing 21 grams of pure energy. That is a lot of energy.

E = MC^2

E = 0.021kg x 300,000,000^2

E = 1.89 x 10^15 Joules

1.89 x 10^15 Joules of energy is about the same energy released from when you burn 20,000 tonnes of oil. So there's no way that could leave a person through a small wormhole, considering it would cause an explosion comparable to a small atomic bomb.

However, i'm not against your theory, in a way it is very similar to religious beliefs about heaven and h**l, however maybe you should be more open to a god. Although your theory could work, what would make it happen every time someone dies? How would nature know when someone has died or not? Your theory has an effect, but there is no cause and maybe this is where some kind of supernatural entity needs to be considered. It has been said that the 21 grams someone loses is their soul, but how can you believe in a soul but not a god? There is no way that nature would have some how created a soul, which is a very religious idea anyway. Maybe seeing the light of this alternate existence, is heaven? Especially considering that a pile of energy has no sensory input to see anything so something or someone must be making them able to see what they see.

Answer 17

In the words of king willie's cronies - "I tell ya what I believe **** HAPPENS".!!!