Noogenesis


Noogenesis is the emergence and evolution of intelligence.

Term origin

Noo-, nous, from the ancient Greek, intelligence, intellect, reason; wisdom; insight, intuition, thought."
Noogenesis was first mentioned in the posthumously published in 1955 book The Phenomenon of Man by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, an anthropologist and philosopher, in a few places:
The lack of any kind of definition of the term has led to a variety of interpretations reflected in the book, including "the contemporary period of evolution on Earth, signified by transformation of biosphere onto the sphere of intelligence—noosphere", "evolution run by human mind" etc.
The most widespread interpretation is thought to be "the emergence of mind, which follows geogenesis, biogenesis and, forming a new sphere on Earth—noosphere".

Recent developments

Modern understanding

In 2005 Alexei Eryomin in the monograph Noogenesis and Theory of Intellect proposed a new concept of noogenesis in understanding the evolution of intellectual systems, concepts of intellectual systems, information logistics, information speed, intellectual energy, intellectual potential, consolidated into a theory of the intellect which combines the biophysical parameters of intellectual energy—the amount of information, its acceleration and the distance it's being sent—into a formula.
According to the new concept—proposed hypothesis continue prognostic progressive evolution of the species Homo sapiens, the analogy between the human brain with the enormous number of neural cells firing at the same time and a similarly functioning human society.
→ 7 billion;
B – number of literate persons;
C – number of reading books ;
D – number of receivers ;
E – number of phones, computers, Internet users
A new understanding of the term "noogenesis" as an evolution of the intellect was proposed by A. Eryomin. A hypothesis based on recapitulation theory links the evolution of the human brain to the development of human civilization. The parallel between the number of people living on Earth and the number of neurons becomes more and more obvious leading us to viewing global intelligence as an analogy for human brain.
All of the people living on this planet have undoubtedly inherited the amazing cultural treasures of the past, be it production, social and intellectual ones. We are genetically hardwired to be a sort of "live RAM" of the global intellectual system. Alexei Eryomin suggests that humanity is moving towards a unified self-contained informational and intellectual system. His research has shown the probability of Super Intellect realizing itself as Global Intelligence on Earth. We could get closer to understanding the most profound patterns and laws of the Universe if these kinds of research were given enough attention. Also, the resemblance between the individual human development and such of the whole human race has to be explored further if we are to face some of the threats of the future.
Therefore, generalizing and summarizing:

Interdisciplinary nature

The term "noogenesis" can be used in a variety of fields i.e. medicine, biophysics, semiotics, mathematics, geology, information technology, psychology, theory of global evolution etc. thus making it a truly cross-disciplinary one. In astrobiology noogenesis concerns the origin of intelligent life and more specifically technological civilizations capable of communicating with humans and or traveling to Earth. The lack of evidence for the existence of such extraterrestrial life creates the Fermi paradox.

Aspects of emergence and evolution of mind

To the parameters of the phenomenon "noo", "intellectus"

The emergence of the human mind is considered to be one of the five fundamental phenomenons of emergent evolution.
To understand the mind, it is necessary to determine how human thinking differs from other thinking beings. Such differences include the ability to generate calculations, to combine dissimilar concepts, to use mental symbols, and to think abstractly.
The knowledge of the phenomenon of intelligent systems—the emergence of reason boils down to:
Several published works which do not employ the term "noogenesis", however, address some patterns in the emergence and functioning of the human intelligence: working memory capacity ≥ 7, ability to predict, prognosis, hierarchical system of information analysis, consciousness, memory, generated and consumed information properties etc. They also set the limits of several physiological aspects of human intelligence. Сonception of emergence of insight.

Aspects of evolution "sapiens"

Historical evolutionary development and emergence of H. sapiens as species, include emergence of such concepts as anthropogenesis, phylogenesis, morphogenesis, cephalization, systemogenesis, cognition systems autonomy.
On the other hand, development of an individual's intellect deals with concepts of embryogenesis, ontogenesis, morphogenesis, neurogenesis, higher nervous function of I.P.Pavlov and his philosophy of mind.
Despite the fact that the morphofunctional maturity is usually reached by the age of 13, the definitive functioning of the brain structures is not complete until about 16–17 years of age.

New manifestations of humanity intelligence

The joint global highly intelligent activity of people, mankind as an autonomous system, in the second half of the 20th century led to acts reflecting the unity of humanity, which in some cases reacts as an autonomous system. Examples of such unity are the founding of the UN and its specialized agencies, the victory over smallpox by vaccination, the atomic energy peaceful use, access into space, nuclear and bacteriological testing bans, and the satellite television arrangement. Already in the 21st century - responding to global warming, hydrocarbon production contractual balancing, overcoming economic crises, mega-projects for joint space observations, the nanoworld study and nuclear research, the ambitions for the study of the brain and the creation of universal artificial intelligence indicated in national and international strategies. With a new challenge to humanity - the COVID-19 pandemic, in a hyperinformational society, the problem was designated as a choice "infopandemic or noogenesis?", "the rise of a global collective intelligence".

The future of intelligence

The fields of Bioinformatics, genetic engineering, noopharmacology, cognitive load, brain stimulations, the efficient use of altered states of consciousness, use of non-human cognition, information technology, artificial intelligence are all believed to be effective methods of intelligence advancement and may be the future of intelligence on earth and the galaxy.

Issues and further research prospects

The development of the human brain, perception, cognition, memory and neuroplasticity are unsolved problems in neuroscience. Several megaprojects are being carried out in: Blue Brain Project, Allen Brain Atlas, Human Connectome Project, Google Brain, - in attempt to better our understanding of the brain's functionality along with the intention to develop human cognitive performance in the future with artificial intelligence, informational, communication and cognitive technology. An International Brain Initiative currently integrated national-level brain research initiatives with goals support an interface between countries to enable synergistic interactions with interdisciplinary approaches arising from the latest research in neuroscience and brain-inspired artificial intelligence etc. According to the Russian National Strategy - fundamental scientific research should be aimed at creating universal artificial intelligence.