************************************* Name: Chris Lofting Country: Australia Age: 53 Gender : Male Profession : Analyst/Programmer
no political affiliations.
Focus: Identifying the source of meaning and as such allowing for the development of meaning within AI systems. (main website: http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting )
In an ongoing analysis of the neurocognitive processes of the species I have been able to identify core elements of the manner in which our species categorises the meaningful from the meaningless. These elements indicate that the general concepts of capitalism and socialism are 'hard coded' in the species, sourcable at the level of the neuron.
The basic structure and function of the neuron determines the structure and function of neural networks within the species and as such in all individuals/collectives etc.
Two primary functions emerge:
(1) The Transformation Function. (2) The Transcendence Function.
The transformation function reflects the encoding of habits and instincts in the dendrites (input areas) of the neuron such that they act as filters and the context can PUSH the individual/collective/species. This push method reflects an overall emphasis on protection through integrating with a context and so reduce energy expenditure - there is no need to continuously monitor the context for sameness, only monitor for difference.
The transformation function is thus the source of habit formation and reflects an overall bias to integration by identifying regular and so predictable patterns, stimuli, that will elicit a specific response. The habits allow for a degree of 'shape shifting' in that changes in context elicit changes in expressions - we start to grow coats for winter, molt for summer, etc.
The sense of the 'eternal' that goes with the transformation function reflects the properties and methods of analytical, aka formal, logic. The focus overall is on PROTECTION and the maintaining of a context to ensure stability in development but to minimise energy outlay, thus there is an underlying focus on conservation of energy and the maintaining of BALANCE. There is also a focus on clear, precise identifications of objects as well as relationships and so the ability to predict.
In a system that encourages habit formation and context integration it is useful to have an 'escape' clause. This escape clause comes in the form of the transcendence function.
In the processing of data, the habits/instincts filters determine the output of neurons. Brain neurons are formed into groups ranging from local networks to lobes to hemispheres such that groups can operate 'as one' through the use of synchronisations (as is done when forming groups of individuals to do work etc)
The synchronisation process works through the excitation/inhibition of a neuron, or neural group, firing.
Anomalies in synchronisation can allow for a habit to be 'sliced n diced' where the re-sequencing of responses to a stimulus can create an 'error' of judgement but also a 'new' insight into a situation.
The new insight can enable a lifeform to REPLACE an existing context with a 'better' one by (a) allowing the lifeform to assert ITS context over the current, or (b) escape the current context for an alternative, 'better', context.
Thus the transcendence function reflects DYNAMIC processes and the focus on CHANGE as compared to the transformation function that focuses more on (a) No Change, and (b) the ability to immediately adapt if there IS change; homeostasis 'rules'.
The transcendence function reflects properties associatable with dialectical logic, where, for example, the replacement emphasis reflects dialectical logic's concept of "negation of a negation" where the interaction of a lifeform with context and the replace of the context allows for a 'transcendence' and as such a 'whole new ballgame'. The initial relationship of lifeform to context reflects A vs B and the resulting 'replacement' is C where the degree of replacement can vary from total replacement to partial where in the latter the transcendence recruits elements of the former context to aid in the transcendence.
The process of synchronisations in neurons reflects the process of recruitment (and so integrations) where recruitment of nearby neurons by a single neuron allows for an increase in bandwidth with which to clearly identify and process a stimulus. This recruitment allows for a benefit to go to the original recruiter that is not necessarily passed-on to the other neurons recruited for the purpose - IOW X can transcend leaving its helpers behind.
Thus the transcendence function has with it an aire of EXPLOITATION in that the goal of transcendence forces the recruitment of others, their exploitation, to achieve the goal without necessarily gaining any benefits. At the level of an idealist collective we see this in the form of wages for labour that is aimed at allowing 'someone' to transcend (and wages does not necessarily mean money)
Analysis of the neurocognitive processes of the brain in general reflect an overall bias in processing to the use of DIFFERENTIATION (D) and INTEGRATION (I) where the D/I dichotomy is applied recursively to elicit a set of general qualities we use as a species to derive meaning. (see draft at http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting/id.html )
The process of differentiation is 'high energy' and reflects the extraction of 'something' from the realm of the everyday with the intent of analysing that 'something' and so deriving all of its details, thus gaining a 'dot' precision mapping of that 'something'.
The high energy focus comes with some physiological consequences, namely the distortion of subjective time experience in that, since the everyday is DYNAMIC and our need to identify 'clearly' has a more STATIC perspective, our sensory systems will experience a 'slowing' of time, even a 'stopping' of time, where time is converted from its thermodynamic links, where there is a definite 'flow' of time that is irreversible, to a concept of time as being mechanical and even reversible. The benefit of this is the emergence of a sense of the 'eternal' and so establishing a 'clear' identification of a stimulus; the cost is the misinterpretations of time concepts and allowance for the emergence of 'spiritual' concepts from a lack of understanding of these physiological processes (an an example of this lack of knowledge see http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting/angels.html )
The realm of the 'everyday' is a realm focused upon BALANCE and so has an emphasis on INTEGRATION rather than differentiation; it also has an emphasis on energy conservation rather than expression. The neurocognitive processes of the brain allow us as a species to extract 'something' from the realm of the everyday and exaggerate it, pour in energy with the intent of experiencing a 'transcendence' in the form of getting a clearer understanding of that 'something'.
The result can be a very refined, very precise, description of that 'something' and the return of that 'something' into the realm of the everyday but now a realm that is a hybrid of species interpretations of 'what is' and 'what is'.
The exaggeration process has its roots as a TOOL for everyday processing but its success has led to an addiction to the 'high energy' focus, the charisma of the social structure that supports such a focus - thus the process of transcendence, rather than being a tool to aid in protecting the species, has become a method used for personal transcendence that is at times 'mindless', lacking in quality and discernment and potentially damaging to the species as a whole.
We can see in the general characteristics of the transformation and transcendence functions the properties and methods of capitalism and socialism. We can also see the ERROR in idealist socialism in that the aim of REPLACEMENT of capitalism by socialism is against the 'natural socialism' that we can identify with the concept of energy conservation and maintaining overall BALANCE.
'Natural' socialism is the ROOT of capitalism, of high energy expenditure, in that the capitalist processes, their exaggerations, have emerged from the totality of things and have enabled us as a species to develop extremely precise maps of reality BUT, on a planet with limited resources this sort of energy expenditure cannot go on 'for ever', nore can the associated exploitations of other species members.
The problem is that a property of collectives that develop out of high energy usage is that of a sense of the eternal (due to the mentioned time distortions) as well as a more 'child-like' mental state that has a problem in considering the consequences of one's actions.
To abolish exploitation, to abolish class, etc is impossible due to these having their roots in the neuron! What can be done is to turn down the 'volume' - to be more discerning in energy expenditure, more conserving in approach to 'new' developments etc.
Marx's work was high energy, very precise, very detailed, such that his perspective was as capitalist as the capitalists! - his focus was on REPLACEMENT but replacement is a property of capitalism, where last year's model is smashed to make way for this year's model. The 'conduits' used by Marx in Capital and COPE reflect the two functions discussed where M-C-M' reflects transcendence and the surplus value perspective as compared to C-M-C which reflected more transformation and the maintaining of balance.
ANY form of 'high focus' thinking will NATURALLY come with a focus more on REPLACEMENT than on BALANCE. Nature shows us, in the form of the properties and methods of brain function, the 'true' path of development where exaggerations are the servant of the everyday rather than *being* the everyday as we find in most western, most idealist, collectives.
As such, capitalism needs to be 'turned down' in volume, but the properties of exploitation etc will always be with us since they are hard-coded properties of the species (and other species for that matter - all rooted in the properties and methods of the neuron). Our personal experiences reflect our being TOO PRECISE when compared to the everyday, our high energy focus has taken us away from the species-level realm of stimulus/response and that is at a cost.
For additional comments on Marx etc see http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting/social.html (The "Failure" of Socialism : social expressions of neurocognitive processes)
For comment on the exploit/protect dichotomy see http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting/exploit.html
best,
Chris. ------------------ Chris Lofting websites: http://pages.prodigy.net/lofting Lists: http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/semiosis http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/ichingplus