"Biology and technology evidence parallel tendencies toward collective, hierarchical processes based on information exchange. As information is distributed, it tends to be represented (encoded) by increasingly economical (meaningful) forms. This evolutionary process, whereby the most economical or meaningful representation wins, leads to a hierarchy of languages, encoding meaning on levels that transcend comprehension by the system's individual components - whether genes, insects, microprocessors, or human minds."
-George B. Dyson, Darwin Among the Machines. The Evolution of Global Intelligence, p. 8.
Collective intelligence, global brain, hive mind, networked consciousness...what does it mean when we make analogies between biological and technological systems? What is erased or required in order to make such comparisons? The idea of a networked intelligence spanning the globe and greater than the sum of its parts, "alive" if you will, is a seductive one. Is this the 21st century's version of God?
Global intelligence requires us to interrogate our long-held belief in unique selfhood. This selfhood has given the human species not only an evolutionary advantage, but also a destructive superiority complex. Can we relinquish it and embrace our interconnectedness not only with all life, but with all information systems? Will you accept "intelligence" if it is defined as a massive parallel processor? Are you ready to merge?
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Sandra,
ReplyDeleteInteresting topic stream here, nice to see this. From the artist's perspective, individuality is paramount. Sense of individuality is key to self-esteem as well. Interest in dividuality doesn't have to translate into self-preoccupation ... and I don't think it has to tie into heirarcy, either.