Of Man, Mind and Machine:

Meme-Based Models of Mind and the Possibility for Consciousness in
Alternate Media

Joshua S. Lateiner

Originally presented to Dr. Daniel C. Dennett, December 10, 1992. Copyright
(c) 1992 by Joshua S. Lateiner, All rights reserved.

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     Introduction
     Memes and the Infosphere
     Virtual Wiring
     Consciousness and the Infosphere
     Through the Looking Glass: How Our Minds Might Enter Cyberspace
     Conclusion
     Review comments on this paper. (You may leave comments using an
     interactive forms-based page)
     Bibliography

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"Human consciousness is itself a huge complex of memes."

-Dennett, page 210 of Consciousness Explained

We will examine the possibilities for human minds to exist in alternate
media. If one accepts a materialist, meme-based theory of mind, then one
will be forced to consider the potential for minds to exist in media other
than the human brain.

Introduction

The model of the mind put forth in Dennett's Consciousness Explained
involves the concept of memes, ideas capable of replicating. The
possibility of meme evolution was advanced by Dawkins, who first coined the
term in The Selfish Gene. Meme evolution was on hold for millions of years,
waiting for the creation of an environment suitable for memes to inhabit --
waiting for the rise of the Homo sapiens. Though similar to biological
evolution, meme evolution occurs at significantly faster rates in much the
same manner that the information revolution has occurred much faster than
the industrial revolution. It has often been said that if industrial
technology had progressed as fast as computer technology, then we would all
be driving Rolls Royces capable of going at supersonic speeds, and it would
be cheaper to dispose of them and purchase new ones than it would to pay
for parking in the evening.

One feature humans possess that makes them hospitable to memes is the
capacity for "virtual wiring" and auto-stimulatory feedback loops. Acts
such as drawing diagrams are methods for "building a 'virtual wire' between
the relevant subsystems" [Dennett 196] in the brain.

Virtual wiring makes humans hospitable to memes because it makes it
possible to introduce "software" into the information processing system
that is the brain. For example, most kitchen blenders are impossible to
program; all of their behaviors are hard-wired. A VCR has the capability to
allow outside influences to alter its behavior -- it is programmable. This
allows the VCR to perform behaviors (such as recording channel two at seven
o'clock on Tuesdays) that are not hard-wired into its circuitry. Similarly,
the human brain's capability to accommodate virtual wiring makes it
possible for memes (software) to alter the brain's behavior.

If the diagram drawing were to be done on a computer -- one that might
recognize that the user was trying to draw a square and offer a perfect
square (such systems do exist) -- then some meme activity might be said to
have occurred outside the brain. This gives us a foundation for exploring
the possibility of consciousness in alternate media, which will be the
focus of this paper.

Memes and the Infosphere

It may be argued that memes have been the driving force in the evolution of
humankind. Surely humans have not been evolved for any specific physical
trait, such as superior speed or agility. Rather, it would appear that
their greatest abilities lie with their information processing skills.
Memes, endowed with spiritual characteristics, might have guided this path
of evolution in order to create a habitat suitable to their reproduction.

Now that memes have gained a means of controlling physical reality through
the human body, they have set about constructing a new, better environment;
cyberspace. Cyberspace is any electronic, physical manifestation of the
infosphere, the ethereal realm of all information. An oral tradition handed
down through the ages belongs only to the infosphere. Once written down,
however, the tale becomes a member of both the physical world and the
infosphere; if written on a word processor, it enters cyberspace.

Cyberspace will eventually contain the entirety of human knowledge, and be
capable of supporting more than static information, but entire dynamic meme
systems as well. Already, primitive pieces of cyberspace have been
developed, such as electronic computers -- capable not only of storing
knowledge but handling primitive meme systems such as word-processors and
spreadsheet programs.

Of course, no isolated computer can become all of cyberspace; the ability
for computers to communicate will be of great importance. Global networks
such as the Internet have served well to enhance the capabilities of both
the computers and users tied into it. Traffic on the Internet is currently
growing at exponential rates as more people learn of the benefits of the
enormous connectivity with people and information that such networks
provide.

As usage grows, the networks also evolve. The cyberspace matrix described
by William Gibson in a series of books loosely known as the Cyberspace
trilogy (Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive) is a possible future
extension of the Internet. Cyberspace is a vast, three-dimensional
electronic environment which spans the globe. In Gibson's world, it can
supporte corporate databases, artificial intelligences, and all manners of
information both static and dynamic. Such an environment would be the
ultimate habitat for memes, as it would provide essentially limitless
opportunities for growth. Furthermore, all transactions could take place on
an electronic rather than biological or mechanical medium, which means
everything would be faster and more efficient.

Cyberspace is simply an extension of the infosphere. The infosphere is the
ethereal realm in which all information exists. It becomes evident whenever
thoughts are transferred or stored. Libraries are great testaments to the
reality of the infosphere.

Virtual Wiring

Expanding on Dennett's model of the mind we might imagine that all thought
processes are composed of cycles of queries, and responses. A typical cycle
includes a primary query, some processing, the generation of an answer and
the integration of the results with the primary query. Millions of these
cycles would be executed in parallel on the machinery of the brain in the
process of simulating ordinary serial thought, which consists of meta-
thought cycles. In a mind cut off from its surroundings, all of these
cycles would be wholly contained within the brain, as shown in figure one.

[Image] (Figure 1)

Once one adds the ability for the brain to communicate with its
surroundings, an adaptive mind will make use of it through processes of
autostimulation [Dennett, 195]. When a person solves a geometric problem
with the aid of a pencil and paper (and perhaps a straight edge and
compass), the query arises in the brain: "At what point does line X
intersect polygon Y?" It is processed on the paper, and the answer is
returned to the brain for integration. We might imagine that such a cycle
takes place at least partially outside the biological brain, and instead in
a "technological realm" (admittedly, a pencil is "low- tech") as shown in
figure two.

[Image] (Figure 2)

As alluded to in the introduction, we might suppose that instead of using a
pencil and paper to help solve a problem, the user interfaces with a
computer. A rough sketch of a geometric primitive is drawn, and the
computer, recognizing the user's intention, draws a perfect rendition of
the object (such systems have been developed at Xerox's PARC research
facility). Thus, the problem may be solved through a complex interaction
between the user and the computer.

It is not difficult to imagine that if the computer was sophisticated
enough, the user would need to provide only the specifications of the
problem. The computer would do some processing, and return an answer. In
this case, a complete thought cycle would have occurred solely within the
technological realm, as the computer queries itself as part of its
processing of the information supplied by the user, as illustrated in
figure three.

[Image] (Figure 3)

In these examples, one should note that the majority of all thought cycles
occurs in the biological realm; the locus of consciousness and the prime
initiator of all thought cycles is in the brain. Indeed, we are not yet
ready to examine any situations in which this is not the case.

Consciousness and the Infosphere

If we accept Dennett's hypothesis that we are nothing more than a huge
collection of memes that do what they can with the environment in which
they find themselves, then we can deduce that our very selves belong to the
infosphere. Memes are information, and all information is a member of the
infosphere. Even if one argues that the physical structure of the brain is
intrinsically inseperable from the memes, it can be shown that computers
can simulate to any given degree of accuracy any physical system. Physical
systems by their very nature can be described in a finite, discrete manner
-- one can examine and categorize every physical feature and recreate it
within a computer model.

While it is not pertinent to this discussion whether or not computer models
have any sort of metaphysical reality, it is important to note that, in
principle, computer models can be constructed which are isomorphic to
physical reality. These models will respond just as their physical
counterparts do to any given set of stimuli. This is not done by attempting
to create an exhaustive list of conditional statements to satisfy all
possible input parameters; then any sufficiently complex model would be
impossible to create due to combinatorial explosion. However, one can model
the physical forces at work and create a system whereby complex responses
are determined by the interaction of a handful of basic rules.

We are ultimately "just" information, albeit a dynamic information system.
In much the same way that part of our being may come to be reflected in the
behavior of those close to us through the transmission of memes from one
person to another, we might expect that the memes which make up our selves
might be able to live in other dynamic information processing systems
exterior to our own brains.

Once we establish that the mind is a physical information- processing
system, and that both information and physical systems may "exist" within
electronic media, then we must accept that it should be possible for the
mind to exist in media other than the organic brain. In Gibson's world,
minds abound in great quantity in Cyberspace. A majority of the minds that
exist strictly within Cyberspace are artificial intelligences, however,
this need not be the case. There is at least one direct example, at the end
of Mona Lisa Overdrive, where Bobby has managed to have his mind take up
residence in Cyberspace. It would appear that Bobby's meme-self has simply
moved from one medium capable of supporting dynamic information systems to
another. What Bobby accomplishes is the inverse of the situation depicted
in figure one. However, it is not really clear how this is accomplished,
though Gibson provides us with some clues.

Through the Looking Glass: How Our Minds Might Enter Cyberspace

It may be easier to understand the following discussion if we examine it
from the viewpoint of memes. To do so, we should first become better
acquainted with them. Memes are living information, capable of being
transmitted and reproduced. Their desire is simply to live and to grow;
that is, to reproduce and generate new memes. This requires a good
information processing environment; a human brain will suffice for the
moment. In principle, memes are immortal. Once generated, there is no
reason information cannot be preserved indefinitely. In the real world,
however, people may forget, libraries may be burnt, and other calamities
may cause the catastrophic loss of information that may terminate a meme's
life.

Memes seek the best possible habitats for themselves in much the same
manner that humans do. We moved out of caves a long time ago, it turned out
that well-appointed houses in the suburbs were much more conducive to the
successful reproduction of both people and memes (it is hard to read in
dimly lit caves).

The ideal habitat for memes would be extremely dynamic -- a combination of
large storage capacity and enormous information processing power; and well
connected, as memes love to communicate (that is how they reproduce and
grow). I postulate that although the memes have made do for the moment with
the human brain, that cyberspace or something like it will ultimately be a
more hospitable medium for memes.

If this is true, then it explains why memes would be interested in
computers, for they provide a taste of the cyberspace to come, and a means
of amplifying the intelligence of human beings. Computers are fast, have
good storage capabilities, and can be very well connected: witness the
Internet. E-mail facilitates the quick and effective transmition of memes
(information), thereby improving access to information and expanding the
capabilities of the meme systems (people) that make use of it.

Memes have worked from the beginning to improve the interface with this
electronic medium so they may move more easily between the technological
and the biological realms. In the beginning of the computer age, the
interface was clumsy, and consisted of punched cards. Then came teletype
keyboards and line printers gave an improved interface, making it easier
for memes to make use of the electronic realm. Shortly thereafter, graphic
displays and mice were invented, making it easy to manipulate vast
quantities of information and providing a high band-width passage through
which memes can travel from one realm to the next.

It is not inconceivable that someday, in the spirit of Walter Grey's
"magic" carrousel, one will be able to interface with machines on the level
of thought by utilizing a direct neuro-electronic interface of the sort
which is ubiquitous in Gibson's novels. One might imagine that with a rich
enough interface and an advanced electronic realm, that one's very thought
processes might start to take place outside one's brain, as in figure four.

[Image] (Figure 4)

Here we have to ask the question of where the locus of consciousness lies;
and here is also where the point becomes moot. Previously, the answer would
simply have been "in the brain." With a sufficiently effective interface,
however, the locus of consciousness might be able to shift its balance from
one realm to the other as easily as it often shifts between hemispheres in
the brain via the high-bandwidth connection across the corpus callosum.
Thus, we have a possible mechanism for meme systems to take up residence in
alternate media.

Conclusion

If we are really nothing more than physically-based meme systems, then the
potential for our minds to take up residence in alternate media exists. We
have explored some of the tantalizing possibilities opened up by taking a
meme-based, materialist view of consciousness; and the future looks like it
will be quite interesting and enriching for meme-kind.

Review comments on this paper. (You may leave comments using an interactive
forms-based page)

Bibliography

Dennett, D. 1991, Consciousness Explained. Boston: Little, Brown and
Company

Gibson, W., Neuromancer. New York: Ace Science Fiction Books

Gibson, W., Count Zero. London: Grafton Books

Gibson, W., Mona Lisa Overdrive. New York: Bantam Books

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JSL