Noospheric Consciousness

* Article: Noospheric consciousness: integrating neural models of consciousness and of the web. By Shima Beigi and Francis Heylighen. WebSci ’21 Companion, June 21–25, 2021, Virtual Event, United Kingdom, 2021

URL = https://biblio.vub.ac.be/vubirfiles/68269042/websci21companion_15_1.pdf

ABSTRACT

"The world-wide web has been conceptualized as a global brain for humanity due to its neural network-like organization. To determine whether this global brain could exhibit features associated with consciousness, we review three neuroscientific theories of consciousness: information integration, adaptive resonance and global workspace. These theories propose that conscious states are characterized by a globally circulating, resonant pattern of activity that is sufficiently coherent to be examined and reflected upon. We then propose a correspondence between this notion and Teilhard de Chardin’s concept of the noosphere as a forum for collective thinking, and explore some implications of this self-organizing dynamics for the evolution of shared, global understanding."

(https://biblio.vub.ac.be/vubirfiles/68269042/websci21companion_15_1.pdf)

Typology

Different types of Distributed Consciousness supported by the web

By Shima Beigi and Francis Heylighen:

"We are now in a position to distinguish different types of distributed consciousness supported by the web.

First, we will envisage the different agents (human as well as technological) communicating via the web as the equivalent of neuronal circuits in the brain, and their communications as equivalent to the “action potentials” or “spikes” transmitted from neuron to neuron. The network structure of the web then becomes equivalent to the associative network in which information is stored for use by cognitive processes of retrieval and inference. That means that it functions as a collective memory: shared knowledge available in websites, databases and computer programs that can be consulted and used when needed, but is otherwise passive.

Information propagates immediately and automatically via the existing links, for example when we download a book, watch the video produced by a remote camera, or order a pizza. This information is retrieved, used, and occasionally updated, but without active reflection or discussion. For example, we can find any info we need about tuberculosis, including ways to deal with it, but are at the moment not further interrogating that knowledge. Similarly, when we send an email, that message is transmitted automatically to the right address, without anyone wondering what path it took to get there. This is undoubtedly a form of distributed cognition, extending the information processing inside our individual minds across the globe. However, from the present perspective this type of process is not conscious, since it is not being examined, pondered or circulated. Therefore, the information that is standardly available on the web can be viewed as the noospheric equivalent of the subconscious.

Noospheric consciousness would then refer to those ideas that are actively circulating, being propagated from person to person or from webpage to webpage, while being scrutinized and discussed.

That means that these ideas are likely to be questioned, rejected or elaborated before they become accepted as common knowledge or as agreed-upon strategy. For example, global society is presently discussing the different factors that promote the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the strategies to most efficiently combat it. Thus, we can say that at the moment, the global brain is consciously attending to COVID-19. On the other hand, it is not consciously attending to tuberculosis or to billions of other pieces of knowledge and processes that are available for retrieval or use, but that remain in the background.

The noosphere then is the equivalent of a global workspace for the global brain.

The web, and in particular social media, provides the shared forum where inputs from many different, more specialized sources come together, complementing, contradicting or confirming each other, while circulating between individuals and systems. Ideas that are passed on, discussed and elaborated sufficiently frequently may start to “resonate” or “reverberate”, thus being amplified until they reach “ignition”, i.e. widespread, global circulation that maintains the overall pattern for a while in global “working memory”."

(https://biblio.vub.ac.be/vubirfiles/68269042/websci21companion_15_1.pdf)

Discussion

SELF-ORGANIZATION OF NOOSPHERIC PATTERNS

By Shima Beigi and Francis Heylighen:

"As elegantly modelled by the mathematical formalism of Chemical Organization Theory, a network of circulating processes tends to self-organize in a self-maintaining, autopoietic pattern.

This pattern creates coherence between the different processes, confirming the information integration theory of consciousness. It does thisby amplifying mutually supporting or synergetic ideas, as noted by

the adaptive resonance theory of consciousness, while eliminating

or filtering out ideas inconsistent with this emerging pattern. Once the pattern has consolidated in this way, it becomes common knowledge or general opinion, and is eventually registered in long-term memory (e.g. a Wikipedia page about the causes of COVID-19, or a new protocol for email transmission). Then, it no longer needs to be discussed and can move to the background. Thus, it becomes part of the collective subconscious—the implicit knowledge and processing we all have access to.

However, the results of this process can be situated on a continuum stretching between two poles. At the pole of closed consciousness, ideas organize in a collective theory or narrative that is impervious to new ideas. This is a strongly self-confirming pattern of activity. It rejects or filters out all information inconsistent with its assumptions, while filling in any gaps by postulating ad hoc explanations. Examples are fundamentalist religions, cults, conspiracy theories, and certain rigid ideologies and totalitarian systems, like the one that dominated the former Soviet Union. The danger is that when inconsistencies accumulate, the pressure to change becomes so strong that the pattern no longer is able to deal with the new conditions. As a result, the whole system may eventually come crashing down, as happened with the Soviet Union.

At the pole of open consciousness, the consensual narrative emerging from discussion continues assimilating any new observations that may appear, so that the pattern is constantly evolving and adapting to the circumstances. The system is resilient or evolvable.

The mental equivalent is more like a fluid “stream of consciousness” rather than the kind of obsessive thoughts that characterize rumination, however, while still consolidating and registering the really good ideas in memory. Here, the Noosphere truly functions as a global forum of conversation and reflection. An example of such a dynamic is the open-ended discussion that characterizes the scientific enterprise and that inspired Tim Berners-Lee to create the web as a medium to facilitate such information exchange."

(https://biblio.vub.ac.be/vubirfiles/68269042/websci21companion_15_1.pdf)

TOWARDS SELF-AWARENESS OF THE NOOSPHERE

By Shima Beigi and Francis Heylighen:

"To ensure that collective consciousness remains open, we may need the more advanced stage of noospheric self-awareness. Here, the autopoietic organization formed by ideas circulating and being discussed has become aware of its own dynamics, so that it can intervene to make its collective thought processes more effective.

This is necessary in particular to prevent premature closure, which would otherwise keep local narratives from assimilating ideas coming from other sources, thus maintaining conflicts and divisions, while preventing global information integration. The present discussion on how to redesign the propagation of messages on social media so as to mitigate the production of fake news, echo chambers and polarization is an example of such emerging noospheric meta-awareness. Another example is the noopolitik for the noosphere strategy proposed by Ronfeldt and Arquilla, in which they argue for the creation and dissemination of narratives that are more encompassing and inclusive in order to prevent conflict and foster a more open, caring and sustainable society.

More broadly, the international Human Energy Project aims at fostering ... noospheric self-awareness by:

• clarifying what the noosphere is and how it functions, • developing a compelling narrative (called “the Third Story”) about its origin and evolution, • formulating strategies for its healthy development towards open, self-aware consciousness, and • disseminating such insights towards the general public via videos, the web and social media.

We propose the present paper as a contribution to achieving these objectives. We hope that it will inspire other researchers to investigate web-supported, global consciousness not just as a metaphor or as a spiritual ideal, but as a concrete, real-world phenomenon that can be observed, modelled and eventually engineered to function more effectively."

(https://biblio.vub.ac.be/vubirfiles/68269042/websci21companion_15_1.pdf)