All Things Reiki

The Universe Is Intelligent—And Your Brain Is Tapping Into It to Form Your Consciousness, Scientist Says

That could mean intelligence is a fundamental property that structures like the brain interact with. By Elizabeth Rayne. Published: Dec 24, 2025 11:48 AM EST

The universe has no brain. It has no gray matter, no nervous system, no neurons firing electrical impulses—and yet, that physical structure may not be where intelligence and consciousness actually come from. Intelligence may exist and evolve on its own, without emerging within living organisms. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below This is the latest hypothesis from biophysicist and mathematician Douglas Youvan, PhD, who spent decades working at the intersection of physics, biology and information theory. He merged research involving enzyme engineering and machine vision with his decades of knowledge in genetics, leading him to realize something remarkable.

“I began to see that life and intelligence weren’t just reactive—they were predictive, efficient, and often mathematically elegant,” Youvan said in an interview earlier this year. “Eventually, I came to believe that intelligence is not a byproduct of the brain, but a fundamental property of the universe—a kind of informational ether that certain structures, like the brain or an AI model, can tap into.”

His more recent work with AI only matured this hypothesis. With AI technologies advancing at what seems like light speed, Youvan felt that the many insights gained came so fast that “they felt more discovered than invented.” It was almost as if some outside force was generating them, and human researchers were pulling them out of the ether where they appeared, he thought. This experience fleshed out a controversial idea that suggests intelligence is a force of the universe that exists separately from living organisms. “I suspect intelligence originates from what might be called an informational substrate of the universe—a pre-physical foundation where structure, logic, and potentiality exist prior to space and time,” he said. Youvan’s concept of intelligence was partly inspired by quantum theory, whose outcomes are probabilistic until actually observed, such as Schrodinger’s cat paradox. In this case, the hypothetical cat, which is in a box with poison, can be both alive and dead until the box is opened. In other words, it exists in two states at the same time until it is measured. Likewise, our networks of neurons do not themselves create intelligence, but are instead made to connect with something that is much larger and outside of them. Youvan thinks this is how we give ourselves access to intelligence. Whatever this process is, it is also evolving on its own in a recursive way, much like the fractal structures visible in structures ranging from crystals to entire galaxies: copy-pasting themselves and occurring at smaller and smaller scales. Our neurons are supposedly made to interface with this outside intelligence because of their own fractal structure, according to Youvan.

Keith Frankish, PhD, is a philosopher whose idea of consciousness and intelligence is on the other end of the spectrum from Youvan’s autonomously intelligent universe. Youvan sees intelligence existing without consciousness “as an elegant algorithm or a perfectly adapted organism.” While Frankish agrees that consciousness and intelligence are intertwined, his view posits that consciousness is not necessarily an illusion. At the same time, it may not be what we think it is, he claims. “We learn about the world around us through perceptual systems that evolved to supply us with information useful for survival,” Frankish said earlier this year. “Similarly, we learn about our own minds through evolved self-monitoring systems designed to give us useful information. But in both cases the systems are selective and distorting. They give us the information we need to survive and flourish, not a complete and wholly accurate picture. This often misleads us.”

Some Interesting Facts about Us and the Universe

The late theoretical physicist "Professor David Bohm" a Professor of theoretical physics at several Universities including Birkbeck College, University of London 1961 - 1987 (photo opposite) discovered that when metal is struck (Gongs are metal) the metal or Gong becomes “excited”, and the electrons inside become highly charged electromagnetically, forming a huge plasma field to be created off the metal / Gong and both the player and listener becomes part of that Plasma field. When the vibrational activity of the Gong ends, the electrons ‘go back’ to their original atoms, and once the Gong comes to rest the energy field collapses. When the Gong is revved up again the Plasma field expands and intensifies. Thus from a scientific point the participants of the event are being electromagnetically charged in a positive, benevolent and holistic fashion. Many walk away with a natural buzz that in some case has lasted for a week. Metal is the only material known where the electrons leave their atoms and join other atoms.

Carl Sagan, the famous Professor of Astronomy and Astro Physics at Cornhill University in America where he directed the laboratory for planetary studies in the 1960s. He hosted the TV series "The Cosmos". famously bridged the gap between complex science and human emotion, describing our existence as deeply interconnected with the vastness of space. His reflections often emphasized three core themes often stated that "we are made of star-stuff," pointing out that the heavy elements in our bodies—such as the nitrogen in our DNA and the iron in our blood—were forged billions of years ago in the nuclear furnaces of dying stars

Human Energy and Vibration

This is a fascinating and highly relevant topic for Gong and Sound  baths as well as Reiki practice, Research into human vibration is conducted across several fields, from "bioenergetics to biophysics" and "occupational safety", leading to different measurement units and contexts. I have found information that addresses the question using the "energetic/holistic (MHz)" frame commonly used in sound healing. Here is a summary of the researched concepts regarding human vibration in healthy, stressed, and diseased states, drawing from relevant articles: Energetic and Holistic Vibration (The MHz Framework) In the field of bioenergetics, which is highly relevant to sound healing and reiki, the entire human body is often discussed in terms of an overall energetic frequency measured in Megahertz (MHz). | State | Proposed Frequency Range | Associated Conditions | | :--- | :--- | :--- |

• Healthy / Optimal 62–78 MHz Associated with feelings of joy, love, compassion, and emotional resilience. This range is considered optimal for the body's self-healing mechanisms (homeostasis). | | **Stress / Lowered** | 
• Below 62 MHz  Linked to negative emotions (anger, fear, jealousy), chronic stress, emotional dysregulation, and general decline in defenses. | | **Illness / Disease** | 
• Below 58 MHz | Frequencies are noted to drop further as illness progresses:  58 MHz  (common cold/flu) 
• 55 MHz (Candida)   
• 42 MHz or below** (chronic diseases/critical states) "Key Research Context". These theories suggest that factors like food, emotions, thoughts (stress/anxiety), and even the media you consume can influence this overall frequency. 

Practices like meditation, gratitude, and sound therapy (using frequencies like 432 Hz or 528 Hz) are believed to raise the body's systemic frequency toward the healthy range. Scientific & Molecular Vibration (Cellular Differences) Scientific research has provided evidence that healthy and diseased tissues exhibit measurable differences in their vibrational characteristics at the cellular and molecular level. "Vibrational Spectroscopy". Techniques like Raman and Infrared (IR) spectroscopy are used to measure the characteristic "vibrational "fingerprints" of molecules" (lipids, proteins, water) within cells. Studies have successfully used these spectral differences to distinguish between:  "Healthy vs. Diseased Tissue". Malignant tissues (like cancer cells) often show altered electrical properties and different vibrational spectra compared to normal tissues due to changes in their chemical composition. This difference in molecular vibration serves as a diagnostic biomarker.  "Tissue Elasticity" Studies suggest that the stiffness and elasticity of afflicted tissue often vary significantly from healthy tissue. This change in physical properties affects the tissue’s "natural resonant frequency". By monitoring the dynamic characteristics (vibration properties) of tissues, researchers are exploring non-invasive methods to differentiate healthy from diseased states. "Key Research Context". This work validates the concept that disease is fundamentally a physical change that alters a body part's intrinsic frequency characteristics, even if these frequencies are highly specific to the tissue or molecule being analyzed, rather than the whole body.

Recommended Article for Further Reading:** For an article that directly connects ancient sound methods to the modern understanding of cells in different states, you may find this review particularly insightful, "Sound Therapy: Vibratory Frequencies of Cells in Healthy and Disease States" (Published in "EC Clinical and Medical Case Reports", 2022).  This review discusses the historical use of sound, the importance of maintaining a healthy vibratory frequency for homeostasis, and how tools are used to administer healthy frequencies to diseased cells. The paper "Sound Therapy Vibratory Frequencies of Cells in Healthy and Disease States," published in EC Clinical and Medical Case Reports (2022), reviews how sound therapy uses resonance to restore cellular harmony, explaining that healthy cells have specific vibratory frequencies, while diseased cells deviate, allowing sound to encourage healing by realigning cells, easing pain, stress, and potentially even diagnosing illnesses early, with applications from muscle issues to cancer support. 

Key Concepts: Resonance & Homeostasis: Healthy bodies maintain equilibrium (homeostasis) through specific electromagnetic (vibrational) frequencies for organs, cells, and tissues. Cellular Impact: Sound waves create vibrations that influence cell structures and functions, promoting beneficial biochemical changes. Disease Detection: Changes in cellular frequencies can indicate disease, potentially allowing for early diagnosis before current tech. Therapeutic Applications: Emotional: Reduces fear, loneliness, and stress, promoting deep relaxation. Physical: Alleviates pain, improves mobility, aids post-op recovery, and helps with tinnitus. Adjunctive Therapy: Can support conventional cancer treatments. Mechanisms: Vibration affects hemodynamics (blood flow), neurology (nerve stimulation, protein kinases), and musculoskeletal systems (bone cells, muscle reflexes).  Applications & Future: Tools: Discusses tools for delivering healthy frequencies and future possibilities in vibrational medicine. Integration: Highlights potential integration into Western medicine for accessible, low-cost treatment. Microbial Health: Sound/vibration can manage beneficial microbial populations, but caution is needed as inappropriate exposure can be hazardous.  In essence, the paper suggests sound therapy is a versatile tool that leverages cellular resonance for holistic healing, addressing physical and emotional ailments by bringing disordered cellular vibrations back into healthy patterns.