Evolving the Self: Cognitive Sciences, the Extended Mind, and the Noosphere

Presented by Abre Fournier (https://www.abrefournier.com/) and Brian Thomas Swimme at the N2 Conference 2023, University of California, Berkeley

Through the span of the scientific and industrial revolutions of the past two centuries, the Western conception of the self, anchored in Cartesian dualistic metaphysics, has predominantly viewed humans as entities distinct from an ostensibly inert universe. Increasingly challenged, such perspectives are no longer viable. Contemporary advancements in physical and cognitive sciences have begun to dismantle these assumptions, recognizing matter as life-generating and mind-generating.

The emerging trend of research in externalist views of the mind accentuates the mind's existence across multiple dimensions. Humans are embodied living organisms, situated across a matrix of environments. Our discussion of human beings as self-organizing dynamical systems brings forth the process of being that refers to the relational brain-body-world dynamics of the mind. Dynamical embodiment extends the realm of the mind beyond mere neurological boundaries, capturing the entirety of an individual's existence—from the intricacies of synaptic networks to broader societal and planetary interconnections.

Philosophically, these views point to a diverse, evolving self or dynamical selfing, argued on the basis of all aspects of self-consciousness being constructed, evolving within the ecosystems of personal relationships that include the intersubjective interactions with the world, a planet of living beings, and things. With this understanding, we suggest we are in the process of constructing a "noospheric self," where noosphere refers to human thought which now envelops the Earth. We assert that this transformation of self-consciousness—from the selves of the modern era developing into dynamical noospheric selves—represents the emergence of a new form of humanity.

Learn more at https://humanenergy.io

Presented by Floor Schukking
N2 Conference 2023
University of California, Berkeley

Broadening the idea of intelligence in AI and the Noosphere

The field of AI and the noosphere share a common interest in intelligence. The central paradigm in the current AI field is that once intelligent systems become advanced enough, they will solve our problems and society will benefit from these intelligent technologies. However, many of the current problems we face, such as the climate crisis, have been a result of the same Euro-Western system of scientific knowledge and liberal-democratic progressive ideals that have shaped the definition of what this intelligence entails. Within AI systems, you might recognize these ideals in optimizing or solving problems related to immediate short-term benefit for a selected group, while often ignoring system- or long-term effects. Placing technological advancement at the core of intelligence does not only lead to problems on a planet with finite resources and interconnected ecosystems, but also indirectly implies the elevation of Euro-Western tech-societies above non-Western peoples. The noosphere vision aims at globally intelligent, and perhaps more important, a thoughtful mind. Currently, applications and implications of what is intelligence in AI is defined by tech companies which are mostly driven by unlimited economic growth and greed. Critical social scientist and philosophers have raised the need for alternative ways of thinking about intelligence, such as decolonial, indigenous or feminist approaches. While keeping the optimism of shaping the noosphere in a positive direction for all, can we broaden the definition(s) of intelligence to create an inclusive, sustainable, loving future and can AI as a theoretical technical framework aid in integrating and envisioning these theories?

Learn more at https://www.humanenergy.io

Presented by Emily DeMoor
N2 Conference 2023
University of California, Berkeley

Literature of the Noosphere for Secondary Education

The scientific study of the Earth’s evolution reveals cooperative and symbiotic relationships as effective strategies for major evolutionary transitions (MET). The next MET, which is already underway, is the creation of a Noosphere in which humans come together in a shared consciousness and heart. This convergence results in intersubjective relationships -- an idea that may be difficult for western cultures to embrace, due to a strong emphasis on individuality. This presentation will look at the phenomenon of intersubjectivity in literary narratives by Gary Paulson, Herman Hesse, Loren Eiseley, Paul Fleishman, and others which may be used in secondary level English Language Arts courses. In doing so, it will explore the language of collectivity, compassion, and empathic fusion - language that may assist youth in re-imagining themselves as part of nature, each other, and a larger, sentient whole; to move beyond the individual liberal subject to a participatory consciousness in which in-between spaces of relationship emerge as sites of encounter and exchange wherein boundaries between “self” and “other” are redefined. The literature featured in this presentation thus promises to help heal the alienation that results from the techno-social dilemma and discover the joy and promise of co-creating a shared consciousness towards a viable planetary future.

In alignment with the NCTE/IRA Standards for the English language Arts, through this literature students may “build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world” (#1) and of the many dimensions of human experience (#2).

Learn more at: https://www.humanenergy.io