Is a person just a combination of lifeless atoms? How is it possible to bridge the gap between matter and consciousness through mere combinations? It's so amazing that a combination of lifeless atoms can generate life and consciousness. If we can unravel the mystery, can we create new species, which would be much more impressive than current artificial intelligence.
In my short essay "Reflections on God and All Things," I have pondered on this phenomenon, attempting to argue for the existence of God. Recently, I have come up with a philosophical hypothesis/speculation to explain this phenomenon.
Plants decay, people die, seeds germinate and grow, the cycle of life and death continues in nature. In this process, there is something that remains unchanged or, in other words, does not die. It is the thing contained in the seed after the plant dies and then grows into a new plant, and it is the thing contained in the sperm and egg of a person that absorbs energy and grows into a new person. This thing is the seed that nurtures life and consciousness, and I may call it "spiritual substance" to distinguish it from the lifeless matter we usually talk about. Let's make a metaphysical hypothesis: this world is composed of matter and spiritual substance. Spiritual substance can absorb energy and bind matter (atoms, molecules, etc.) together to form life and consciousness. Spiritual substance is the material that forms the soul. However, going back to the point, aren't the seeds and fertilized eggs composed of atoms as well? Aren't they the same as the matter we usually talk about? But why can seeds and fertilized eggs grow into life, while other matter (such as plant leaves, human bones, muscles, etc.) cannot without modern biotechnology? Science should study this phenomenon carefully. What is the difference between seeds and fertilized eggs and ordinary matter, besides containing ordinary matter (atoms, molecules)? Is there something else (spiritual substance) inside them? Perhaps this spiritual substance cannot be detected by existing scientific instruments, just like dark matter, it is inferred. It should be noted that before the invention of electromagnetic wave detection instruments, science could not detect the existence of electromagnetic waves.