Quantum evidence of nonlocal consciousness during clinical death.

Overview

Institutions: Universidad Pontificia Comillas (Spain); Manchester Metropolitan University (United Kingdom); Liverpool John Moores University (United Kingdom); Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Spain); Research Institute Hospital 12 de Octubre (Spain); Biomedical Research Networking Center on Neurodegenerative Diseases (Spain); Hospital Universitario 12 De Octubre (Spain)

Journal: Innovation (Cambridge (Mass.)), volume 7, issue 9, article 101355

Dates: received 16 October 2025; accepted 20 March 2026; published online 25 March 2026

Type: Research article · Language: English

License: CC BY

Identifiers: DOI 10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355 · PMID 42719279 · PMCID PMC13556340 · OpenAlex W7140316353

Open access: gold, a free copy (OpenAlex)

Status: code on request (how the code is found and verified)

Categories: fNIRS (modality), human (organism), clinical / translational (subfield)

Methods: Connectivity, Statistics

Keywords: near-death experiences, clinical death, quantum entanglement, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, resuscitation

Topic: Paranormal Experiences and Beliefs (Social Psychology, Psychology), according to OpenAlex

Funding: NINDS NIH HHS (R01 NS094607, R01 NS039422)

Citations: not cited yet (Europe PMC); 106 references in the paper

Abstract

If consciousness can operate under quantum principles, then the boundaries between life, death, and cognition are far more permeable than current science allows. In the first large-scale, randomized, double-blind, multicenter trial to test this possibility, conducted across 13 hospitals in the UK and Spain, we investigated whether the human mind can access information during clinical death—but only when exposed to auditory stimuli governed by quantum entanglement. The entangled stimulation circuit was implemented and synchronized with the 127-qubit IBM Brisbane quantum supercomputer and delivered during in-hospital cardiopulmonary arrest (CA), beginning 120 s after arrest onset. Quantum entanglement was verified through statistically significant violations of Mermin inequalities. During resuscitation, we measured neurophysiological biomarkers including cerebral oxygenation via near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), brain temperature, and blood pH, lactate, and serum concentrations of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). After reanimation, 142 survivors completed a forced-choice recall test, near-death experience (NDE) scales, and other clinical control assessments. False memories, hallucinations, and confounding biases were successfully controlled. Notably, recall lucidity increased momentarily as NIRS values dropped, and NDEs positively correlated with neuroplasticity during CA. Biomarker models explained up to 56.8% of the variance in recall. These findings compel a radical rethinking of clinical death: consciousness may persist—quantum bound, detectable, and not yet defeated.

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY), from the paper cited above.

Code

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Data

No dataset and no data link were found in the paper.

Data and code availability

The data supporting the results of this study are available from the first corresponding author upon reasonable request. Access will be granted to qualified researchers following appropriate ethical review and verification of the absence of conflicts of interest.

Reproduced under the paper's license (CC BY), from the paper cited above.

Versions

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Version 1, 30 September 2026: the first record

Recorded: type, language, journal, volume, issue, pages, dates, 5 authors, 5 keywords, 1 funder, 86 references.

Cite

This paper

Escolà-Gascón, Á., Drinkwater, K., Denovan, A., Dagnall, N., & Benito-León, J. (2026). Quantum evidence of nonlocal consciousness during clinical death. Innovation (Cambridge (Mass.)), 7(9), 101355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355

BibTeX

@article{escolagascon2026quantum, author = {Escolà-Gascón, Álex and Drinkwater, Kenneth and Denovan, Andrew and Dagnall, Neil and Benito-León, Julián}, title = {{Quantum evidence of nonlocal consciousness during clinical death}}, journal = {Innovation (Cambridge (Mass.))}, year = {2026}, month = mar, volume = {7}, number = {9}, pages = {101355}, publisher = {Elsevier}, issn = {2666-6758}, doi = {10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355}, pmid = {42719279}, pmcid = {PMC13556340} }

RIS

TY - JOUR AU - Escolà-Gascón, Álex AU - Drinkwater, Kenneth AU - Denovan, Andrew AU - Dagnall, Neil AU - Benito-León, Julián TI - Quantum evidence of nonlocal consciousness during clinical death T2 - Innovation (Cambridge (Mass.)) J2 - Innovation (Camb) PY - 2026 DA - 2026/03/25 VL - 7 IS - 9 SP - 101355 SN - 2666-6758 PB - Elsevier DO - 10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355 UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2026.101355 LA - en ER -

CSL-JSON

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