Love and Philosophy | Intelligences as Diverse Processes of Life's Way Makings @waymaking23 | Uploaded March 2024 | Updated October 2024, 7 hours ago.
This is the transcript of a talk in Oslo about cognition where the prompt was "How can human cognition be more sustainable?" The idea in this talk is not that we can reduce all other intelligences to human intelligence but just the opposite, that human cognition is only one growing part of many diverse intelligences that need not look or be anything like human intelligences in order to be called mind or cognition. At the same time, we can understand that the pattern connects us as beings.
This paper explores the idea that human cognition, or our process of thinking, is not a standalone human capability but the culmination of processes that have existed since life began. The presentation argues that what we typically understand as human cognition—thought, intelligence, mind—is in fact a part of a larger, life-spanning process of 'way making'. This way making includes all forms of life, from plants and animals to humans, and depends on being embodied in the world rather than on specific types of brains or bodies. The paper introduces the concept of landscapes as areas of shared space that are geographical but also linguistic, imaginative and emotional, landscapes at various scales that are encountered regularly by beings, suggesting that all life navigates these at various scales and dimensions using their unique forms of cognition which are also necessarily connected as real, shared time and space. It also discusses contemporary neuroscience research, notably from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, that supports the view that human navigation and cognition use similar processes in the brain, specifically focusing on the hippocampus and its use in spatial navigation and memory. Ultimately, the script calls for a broader understanding of cognition as a way-making process that is shared across different forms of life, emphasizing the need for sustainable human cognition that acknowledges and supports the interconnectedness of all life.
#cognitivesystems #waymaking #andreahiott
For building philosophy together, sign up here: communityphilosophy.substack.com
Love and Philosophy Beyond Dichotomy started as research conversations across disciplines. There was so much I wanted to explore but I was being told I shouldn't explore beyond certain bounds because it didn't fit into this or that discipline, or because this or that idea was too wild or too uncomfortable or too popular or unpopular, but because I study and work in so many, those barriers just no longer made sense. The same felt true relative to passions and love.
So I decided to open myself to all of it beyond traditional distinctions, towards learning and development, so long as love and health were the intentions behind those doing the work I was exploring. This podcast is where those voices gather together in one space as I try and notice the patterns that connect.
It's part of my life work and research, but it's also something I hope to share with you and to invite you to share your perspective and position. Thank you for being here.
00:00 Exploring the Sustainability of Human Cognition
01:13 The Interconnectedness of Cognition Across Life Forms
03:01 Redefining Cognition: From Human to Universal
08:00 Navigating Through Cognitive and Physical Landscapes
09:51 The Role of the Brain's Navigation System in Cognition
16:18 Understanding Cognition as Way Making
22:19 Modeling and Simulating for a Sustainable Future
25:23 Concluding Thoughts on Sustainable Cognition
correction to slide: solving not sovling
This is the transcript of a talk in Oslo about cognition where the prompt was "How can human cognition be more sustainable?" The idea in this talk is not that we can reduce all other intelligences to human intelligence but just the opposite, that human cognition is only one growing part of many diverse intelligences that need not look or be anything like human intelligences in order to be called mind or cognition. At the same time, we can understand that the pattern connects us as beings.
This paper explores the idea that human cognition, or our process of thinking, is not a standalone human capability but the culmination of processes that have existed since life began. The presentation argues that what we typically understand as human cognition—thought, intelligence, mind—is in fact a part of a larger, life-spanning process of 'way making'. This way making includes all forms of life, from plants and animals to humans, and depends on being embodied in the world rather than on specific types of brains or bodies. The paper introduces the concept of landscapes as areas of shared space that are geographical but also linguistic, imaginative and emotional, landscapes at various scales that are encountered regularly by beings, suggesting that all life navigates these at various scales and dimensions using their unique forms of cognition which are also necessarily connected as real, shared time and space. It also discusses contemporary neuroscience research, notably from the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, that supports the view that human navigation and cognition use similar processes in the brain, specifically focusing on the hippocampus and its use in spatial navigation and memory. Ultimately, the script calls for a broader understanding of cognition as a way-making process that is shared across different forms of life, emphasizing the need for sustainable human cognition that acknowledges and supports the interconnectedness of all life.
#cognitivesystems #waymaking #andreahiott
For building philosophy together, sign up here: communityphilosophy.substack.com
Love and Philosophy Beyond Dichotomy started as research conversations across disciplines. There was so much I wanted to explore but I was being told I shouldn't explore beyond certain bounds because it didn't fit into this or that discipline, or because this or that idea was too wild or too uncomfortable or too popular or unpopular, but because I study and work in so many, those barriers just no longer made sense. The same felt true relative to passions and love.
So I decided to open myself to all of it beyond traditional distinctions, towards learning and development, so long as love and health were the intentions behind those doing the work I was exploring. This podcast is where those voices gather together in one space as I try and notice the patterns that connect.
It's part of my life work and research, but it's also something I hope to share with you and to invite you to share your perspective and position. Thank you for being here.
00:00 Exploring the Sustainability of Human Cognition
01:13 The Interconnectedness of Cognition Across Life Forms
03:01 Redefining Cognition: From Human to Universal
08:00 Navigating Through Cognitive and Physical Landscapes
09:51 The Role of the Brain's Navigation System in Cognition
16:18 Understanding Cognition as Way Making
22:19 Modeling and Simulating for a Sustainable Future
25:23 Concluding Thoughts on Sustainable Cognition
correction to slide: solving not sovling
