The Basic Principles Of Thought
What makes us and society tick
I’ve now written a number of articles about the Web Of Thought (WOT) project. It’s about thought, what it is and how it works. I know it seems like a strange project to be working on. Some would suggest I should be doing something practical.
What could be more practical? It’s thought that makes us and society tick. Most of us believe thought is something that happens in our heads, and that’s it. But, thought is what has made humanity what it is. Thought has created and maintains the whole of society. Unfortunately, our society doesn’t have a clear understanding of thought. So, our greatest asset is also our greatest weakness.
The scope of the project is to define an informational model of thought. The model will underpin a Thought API to empower applications to help humanity. The WOT information model is based on some principles which are not very intuitive. These are the first four basic principles of the model.
Web Of Thought Basic Principles
1. Thought is Information
Thought is the data received, processed, and transmitted by entities.
This contradicts our common knowledge of thought. We believe thought to be this thing that we create, and which only exists in our heads. In fact, thought is all around us. It is the information which humans and other species use to propagate, navigate, and interact in the world.
“…the cognitive revolution of the 1950’s and 1960’s … explains the mechanics of thought and emotion in terms of information and computation” — Steven Pinker, How the mind works
When we do something, we are representing thought in our actions and creations. By understanding thought to be information, we can see it for what it is — the glue that links humanity together.
2. Thought is Computed
Novel thought derives from the computation of existing thought.
We’re all used to saying, “I just had a thought.” In fact, we didn’t just have it — we either recalled or computed it. Thought is processed in our nervous system. We don’t actually create thought out of thin air. Our thought is a result of our experience. We can’t think something that isn’t a thought we already know, or a computed result of multiple existing thoughts.
3. Thought is Embodied
Information is encoded into organisms, artifacts, and transmission mediums.
As with a computer, information needs to be recorded somewhere to be used. Our bodies serve that function. Thoughts are encoded into the cells of our nervous system. This is true of other species as well.
“The mind is inherently embodied.”
― George Lakoff, Philosophy In The Flesh
Man-made objects (artifacts), also have thought encoded into the material which they are made of. This is a key way our society transmits thought. We use computers, books, movies, and other artifacts to distribute thought across time and space.
Another form of embodiment is found in the mediums of transmission such as light and sound. It’s how we see a smile or hear a cry. These are both examples of the information which drive our social interactions.
4. Thought is Shared
Thought is simultaneously embodied in multiple entities.
Because we only mix and match thoughts, we need to acquire thoughts from others. In other words, we need to share thought. When we share a thought, it also remains with us, but a derivative copy is embodied by the other entity.
“…the whole society sharing thoughts — it’s all one process.”–David Bohm, Thought as a System
At any point in time, the same thoughts are being shared by a multitude of people and artifacts. Let’s look at the word “hello”. Millions of people have shared and continue to share the thought that represents that word and the concept associated with it. There are billions more instances of it encoded onto television shows, movies, books, magazines, the web, and so on. Today, it’s held by all these entities, but none of them created it. In fact, it was first published in 1833 and presumably created some time before that.
The above principles are a starting point for the WOT model. More principles will be added as the model evolves in the coming months.
Any questions, or comments? Would you like to contribute? Let me know by leaving a comment or contact me @jaleal on twitter.
