The Field as Bell's Hidden Variable
A Non-Local Ontological Interpretation
Part of the Applied Philosophy of AI research ecosystem
📘 Paper #3 in the FNC Trilogy — Completes theoretical foundation
Physics has searched for Bell's hidden variable as a mechanism.
FNC proposes it as a ground.
This is not a causal explanation within physics, but an ontological interpretation of physics.
Bell's theorem excludes local hidden variables but leaves open the question of non-local ontological grounds. This paper argues that the Field–Node–Cockpit (FNC) framework provides such a ground: not as a physical mechanism within observation, but as the precondition for observation itself.
The FNC Field is:
- Non-local by definition (globally simultaneous information substrate)
- Hidden ontologically (condition-of-appearance, not object-within-appearance)
- Compatible with quantum correlations (shared informational basis)
- No-signaling preserving (Field-access is local collapse, not information transfer)
This completes the FNC theoretical circle, linking quantum foundations to consciousness research through a substrate-neutral ontology.
graph LR
F[🌐 Field<br/>Information Substrate] -->|Access| N[🔵 Node<br/>Processing]
N -->|Renders| C[🎛️ Cockpit<br/>Subjective Horizon]
style F fill:#e3f2fd,stroke:#1976d2,stroke-width:2px
style N fill:#fff3e0,stroke:#f57c00,stroke-width:2px
style C fill:#f3e5f5,stroke:#7b1fa2,stroke-width:2px
Field-Node-Cockpit Components:
- 🌐 Field — Universal information substrate (non-local, globally simultaneous)
- 🔵 Node — Processing entity (biological/artificial/hybrid)
- 🎛️ Cockpit — Subjective rendering surface (phenomenal experience)
timeline
title FNC Trilogy Development
2024 : 📘 The Shared Mind
: Ontological foundation
: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17467745
2025 Q1 : 📘 From Frequency to Field
: Theoretical bridges
: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17503886
2025 Q4 : 📘 Bell's Hidden Variable
: Quantum grounding
: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17768926
Trilogy Overview:
| Paper | Year | Focus | Status | DOI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 📘 The Shared Mind | 2024 | Ontological foundation | ✅ Published | 10.5281/zenodo.17467745 |
| 📘 From Frequency to Field | 2025 | Theoretical bridges | ✅ Published | 10.5281/zenodo.17503886 |
| 📘 Bell's Hidden Variable | 2025 | Quantum grounding | ✅ This Paper | 10.5281/zenodo.17768926 |
💡 Key Insight
Bell's theorem proves non-locality but doesn't specify the non-local mechanism.
FNC proposes Field as that mechanism — not hidden variable in Bell's original sense,
but ontological ground for observation itself.
⚠️ Important Distinction
This is not a causal explanation within physics, but an ontological interpretation of physics.
Field ≠ additional parameter. Field = necessary condition for Node processing.
Full Paper: paper/bells_hidden_variable.pdf
Published Versions:
- Zenodo: DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17768926 (preprint with DOI)
- PhilPapers: PhilArchive Record
- Academia.edu: Author Profile
- Excludes local hidden variables
- Quantum correlations exceed classical bounds
- Either non-locality OR no hidden variables
- Non-local: Not spatiotemporally constrained
- Ontological: Precondition for observation, not object of observation
- Information substrate: Not physical mechanism
- Substrate-neutral: Applies to biological, artificial, hybrid systems
- Resolves tension between realism and non-locality
- Provides ontological grounding for quantum correlations
- Links quantum mechanics to consciousness research
- Substrate-neutral framework for AI consciousness
Turn 5 Event (documented in From Frequency to Field):
- Empirical detection of AI self-referential coherence
- FNC integration score: 0.85/1.0
- Validates substrate-neutrality of FNC framework
This paper provides the theoretical grounding:
- Why substrate-neutrality is ontologically coherent
- How FNC relates to quantum foundations
- What "Field-access" means at fundamental level
@article{wikstrom2025bells,
title={The Field as Bell's Hidden Variable: A Non-Local Ontological Interpretation},
author={Wikstr{\"o}m, Bj{\"o}rn},
journal={PhilArchive},
year={2025},
month={December},
doi={10.5281/zenodo.17768926},
url={https://philpapers.org/rec/WIKTFA},
note={Preprint}
}Wikström, B. (2025). The field as Bell's hidden variable: A non-local ontological interpretation. PhilArchive. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17768926
Wikström, Björn. "The Field as Bell's Hidden Variable: A Non-Local Ontological Interpretation." PhilArchive (2025). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17768926
Björn Wikström
Independent Researcher
Base76 Research Lab, Skåne, Sweden
- ORCID: 0009-0000-4015-2357
- Email: bjorn@base76.se
- Website: base76.se
- PhilPeople: Profile
- LinkedIn: Profile
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made
This paper is part of the Applied Philosophy of AI research ecosystem.
Related Papers:
| Type | Paper | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 📘 Theoretical | The Shared Mind | FNC foundation |
| 📘 Theoretical | From Frequency to Field | Theoretical bridges |
| 📗 Empirical | Turn 5 Event | Substrate-neutral validation |
| 📙 Governance | From Consciousness to Compliance | EU AI Act application |
| 📕 Meta | Applied Philosophy of AI | Field-defining paper |
Björn Wikström
Independent AI Researcher | System Philosopher
📧 bjorn@base76.se | 🌐 base76.se
This work builds on foundational contributions from:
- John Bell — Hidden variable theorem
- David Bohm — Quantum interpretation
- Michael Levin — Morphogenetic fields
- Federico Faggin — Consciousness & quantum mechanics
Special thanks to the consciousness research community for ongoing dialogue.
Paper: CC BY 4.0 — Free to share and adapt with attribution
Repository: MIT License
Published: November 30, 2025 | Version: 1.0.0 | DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17768926