Dualism and The Law of Conservation of Energy

In this paper I will be describing Dualism and how critics say that Dualism violates The
Law of Conservation of Energy. In the second half of the paper I will present my point of view
as to how I believe they both can exist together.
In Dualism, there is the belief that we have the brain state (physical) and the mind state
(mental). The brain state is the physical state and the mind state is all of the thoughts that we
have. The mind resides somewhere outside the body in close proximity to the brain. The mind
state relays information, thoughts, and actions to the brain to be performed. The argument
arises that some critics of Dualism say that this transfer from mind to brain violates The Law of
Conservation of Energy. This law states that energy can never be created nor destroyed. Critics
of Dualism say that the mind state doesnt have its own energy stores held in it so for it to act
upon the brain it must get energy from somewhere. They argue that if the mind creates its
own energy this is a direct violation of the law. The question has been how the mind can create
energy out of nothing to be able to transfer actions to the brain. Another criticism comes in the
form that energy can only be transferred from one object to another. That means that if
energy is used in one place such as the mind, it must be depleted in another place in order for
the Law of Conservation of Energy to hold true that the total amount of energy in the universe
remains constant. The critics also argue that because the mind state has no physical properties
that It cannot use energy that is then converted into physical energy. The question arises at
this point, where did the energy come from in the first place? The third argument is that
energy in a system remains constant. This means that the mind state would have to use energy

from somewhere close like the brain. Then it would have to return the energy to the brain for
the brain to go perform the functions that it was told to do... With all this being said, the
argument against Dualism with the Law of Conservation of Energy has some valid points when
you look at how the law is intended to be interpreted.
In this part of the paper I will argue that although the Law of Conservation of Energy
gives us good reason at surface level to question whether Dualism can actually exist. I believe
that Dualism and the Law of Conservation of Energy can exist together. I believe that the Law
of Conservation of Energy actually only applies to things with physical properties such as the
brain, body, trees, cars, etc. I do not believe it applies to things that are outside of the physical
realm. The mind state is a non-physical entity. It resides in a general area but we are not for
sure where in the space of the human body. I believe that there is another level of energy that
has yet to be discovered that doesnt apply to the Law of Conservation of energy. Everyday
scientists are discovering new energetic particles that have never been seen before. They will
eventually find the energy particles that the mind state has to have to function and how it is
transferred to make the brain perform. The current Law of Conservation of Energy doesnt
apply to non-physical entities and therefore shouldnt be used to discount Dualism and whether
it is valid or invalid. I believe that with this frame of thinking that Dualism still can exist and so
can the Law of Conservation of Energy.
In conclusion, I believe that the critics of Dualism are just looking for ways to prove it
doesnt exist because they dont understand it. I believe that Dualism is a real possibility and
that it can coexist with the Law of Conservation of Energy. I believe that the energy that the

mind state possesses is not the same energy that we are thinking of for physical movement. I
think that we will soon discover where this energy comes from and how it works. And that it is
compatible with the Law of Conservation of Energy and everyone will be happy.

Hunter Somerville