The Evolution of Complementary Cognition: Humans Cooperatively Adapt and Evolve through a System of Collective Cognitive Search

We propose a new theory of human cognitive evolution, which we term Complementary Cognition. We build on evidence for individual neurocognitive specialization regarding search abilities in the modern population, and propose that our species cooperatively searches and adapts through a system of group-level cognition. This paper sets out a coherent theory to explain why Complementary Cognition evolved and the conditions responsible for its emergence. Using the framework of search, we show that Complementary Cognition can be contextualized as part of a hierarchy of systems including genetic search and cognitive search. We propose that, just as genetic search drives phenotypic adaptation and evolution, complementary cognitive search is central to understanding how our species adapts and evolves through culture. Complementary Cognition has far-reaching implications since it may help to explain the emergence of behavioural modernity and provides a new explanatory framework for why language and many aspects of cooperation evolved. We believe that Complementary Cognition underpins our species’ success and has important implications for how modern-day systems are designed.

Border handling as the most correct dynamic principle of the beginning of the register of immovable cultural heritage development

The correct start of work on developing a spatial data infrastructure of the domain of immovable cultural heritage (CH) of Ukraine is to model the entities boundaries of the CH in the most accessible way at the moment. Created models are used together with the necessary transformations, both in separate systems from the set of CH domain systems, and in several appropriately ordered systems from this set. Many of the required systems are organized into a hierarchy of systems called Atlas Geographic Information System: from public models of CH entities on the Internet to the State System for permanent registration or registration of CH objects under the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy (MCIP) of Ukraine. Border management includes support for the entire life cycle of the spatial characteristics of CH entity models – from random statement about the CH object to the transformation into an object of the registration system or even an object of the national register. It is shown that when defining boundaries, you need to be able to work with different spatial characterizations of the CH object. It is proved that this characterization can be started from available cartographic material, and not from the implementation of land management projects, as it is done in the case of spatial characterization of land parcels. The elements of the methodology are described, which allows to carry out the necessary spatial characterization of the CH objects in practice.

Socio-cultural causality method in the development of the culturology as a science

In the article has been proposed a method of socio-cultural causality, which has been specified a cultural acces (in the broadest sense of the priority of culture for all spheres of human life and society) in culturology.despite the recognition of academic status and the claim to methodological expansion, the culturology has not yet completed the process of developing its own methodology, which leaves the newly acquired «scientific» in a state of openness for discussion. The systemic study of the phenomenon of culture allows the culturology to formulate its own acces to its study, which can be regarded as a universal scientific method. The method of socio-cultural causality has been marked as a part of the culturological acces. The method of socio-cultural causality — the establishment of cause-effect relationship between the object under study and the cultural system (the hierarchy of systems) in which it is located. It has been definited two conditions of using of the new method. 1. It does not require recognition of the cultural consequences of the event, phenomenon, personal activity as a decisive feature. However, it should be borne in mind that the significance of such effects increases with the development of the human civilization. 2. Cultural effects of the studied events, phenomena and personalities should be ranked in time-space perspective of different lengths and lengths. It has been noted that socio-cultural causality method can give a scientific result in the study of culture itself. The method of socio-cultural causality opens the inductive way of compiling the consequences of individual phenomena in various spheres into global cultural trends. It has beens shown that the expansion of the method of socio- cultural causality contributes to the consolidation of a special epistemological status in the culturology — an integral science of culture.

Autopoiesis, Observation and Informatics: Lessons from the Development of Autopoietic Systems Theory in Japan

This article is concerned with redefining the notion of information from a perspective of systems theory. In recent years, the notion of information, which was closely related to the framework of old cybernetics, has been refined in parallel with the emergence of new cybernetics, especially second-order cybernetics and autopoiesis. The systemic view of new cybernetics provides us with the notion of “informationally closed system.” This notion is congruent with the epistemological implications of radical constructivism. In order to help understand this argument, we aim at highlighting the development of autopoietic systems theory in Japan. Autopoiesis has often been considered as a thoroughly closed system in Japan, where the relationships between autopoiesis and radical constructivism have frequently been overlooked. This is mainly because the importance which autopoietic systems theory originally attaches to the notion of observer and observation has been inadequately discussed, and autopoietic systems theory is regarded as distinct from second-order cybernetics and radical constructivism. However, they must be dealt with together, and Humberto Maturana should be given credit for his ontology of observing. Since the publication of his paper “Biology of Cognition,” Maturana has been attempting to explain the notion of observation as a biological phenomenon in his own way. Likewise, by taking into consideration the notion of observation, we can build a unified theory of information. Fundamental Informatics, which is being developed by Toru Nishigaki, outlines a unified approach to information by putting human observers at the center of his theory. Social and mechanical information is generated only when human observers conduct observations on the basis of biological information, and this mechanism of generation of information is discussed through the notion of “hierarchical autonomous system.” For an autopoietic organi- zation to be realized, of course, no hierarchy of systems is required, but observers are likely to construct some hierarchy between two systems. The construction of certain hierarchies of systems by observers is of great use for the explanation of fictitious phenomena of information transmission.

Autopoiesis, Observation and Informatics: Lessons from the Development of Autopoietic Systems Theory in Japan

This article is concerned with redefining the notion of information from a perspective of systems theory. In recent years, the notion of information, which was closely related to the framework of old cybernetics, has been refined in parallel with the emergence of new cybernetics, especially second-order cybernetics and autopoiesis. The systemic view of new cybernetics provides us with the notion of “informationally closed system.” This notion is congruent with the epistemological implications of radical constructivism. In order to help understand this argument, we aim at highlighting the development of autopoietic systems theory in Japan. Autopoiesis has often been considered as a thoroughly closed system in Japan, where the relationships between autopoiesis and radical constructivism have frequently been overlooked. This is mainly because the importance which autopoietic systems theory originally attaches to the notion of observer and observation has been inadequately discussed, and autopoietic systems theory is regarded as distinct from second-order cybernetics and radical constructivism. However, they must be dealt with together, and Humberto Maturana should be given credit for his ontology of observing. Since the publication of his paper “Biology of Cognition,” Maturana has been attempting to explain the notion of observation as a biological phenomenon in his own way. Likewise, by taking into consideration the notion of observation, we can build a unified theory of information. Fundamental Informatics, which is being developed by Toru Nishigaki, outlines a unified approach to information by putting human observers at the center of his theory. Social and mechanical information is generated only when human observers conduct observations on the basis of biological information, and this mechanism of generation of information is discussed through the notion of “hierarchical autonomous system.” For an autopoietic organi- zation to be realized, of course, no hierarchy of systems is required, but observers are likely to construct some hierarchy between two systems. The construction of certain hierarchies of systems by observers is of great use for the explanation of fictitious phenomena of information transmission.

Knowledge Needs of Self-Organized Systems

Self-organized systems are capable of changing their own structure in order to adapt themselves to significant changes in their environment. They are at the top of a hierarchy of systems that arranges systems according to the degree of control they have upon their own actions. Self-directed systems, self-regulated systems and uncontrolled systems are the reminder levels of that hierarchy. The framework developed in this chapter identifies the necessary components at each level of control. These components include operators, coordinators, regulators, directors, organizers and informers. The framework can be described as a model of the general architecture of self-organized systems. It is used to identify and characterize the knowledge needs of self-organized systems by examining the functionality, characteristics and knowledge needs of each of those components.

Synchronized Chaos in Coupled Double Disk Homopolar Dynamos

Symmetrically coupled systems of N self-exciting Faraday disk homopolar dynamos have been proposed by Hide [1997] as a testbed for both the analytical and numerical study of the dynamics of coupled dynamo systems. There arises a natural hierarchy of systems, consisting of a series of N single disk dynamos, each in series with a motor [Hide et al., 1996]. Synchronization in the dynamics of these systems is investigated. The transition from the special case of strict amplitude and linear phase locking to the case of more general synchronization is examined. The particular case of two magnetically coupled homopolar dynamos with dissimilar characteristics is considered; the behavior of this N = 2 case is governed by six-coupled nonlinear ordinary differential equations which contain a total of thirteen dimensionless parameters. It is proved that for sufficiently small perturbations, the states of each of the two component dynamos are locked together. Numerical results suggest that this locking extends to finite perturbations, the state of one system being a linear function of the state of the other. As the size of the perturbation increases, this strict phase locking is lost, yet the complicated chaotic trajectories of each dynamo appear to remain strictly synchronized. This paper is therefore the result of a previous study of coupled dynamos [Moroz et al., 1998] in which no more than five of the parameters were assumed to be independent.