Complexity + Consciousness: A model of Big History based on - - PDF document

4 Aug 2012 1 Dr Joseph Voros

Faculty of Business and Enterprise Swinburne University of Technology Melbourne, Australia

Complexity + Consciousness:

A model of Big History based on self-organising complexity, incorporating consciousness

(or, “can I have consciousness with that?”)

Teaching and Researching Big History: Exploring a New Scholarly Field The International Big History Association inaugural conference, August 2-5, 2012 Grand Valley State University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA.

Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness Current models of Big History usually consider the observed increases over cosmic time-scales of material-energetic complexity as a foundational concept, but do not have as clear a way to also consider the observed increases in the complexity of human cognitive experiences (“interiority”)

• ver the time-frame that we have been able to observe it.

A model of Big History is presented which seeks to unify the material-energetic-complexity view of Big History, founded

• n the physical sciences, with an “increasing complexity of

interiority” view, which has recently emerged from the humanities, especially psychology and anthropology.

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Rationale

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Big History as a case of self-organising complexity

• Erich Jantsch wrote perhaps the first book
• n a model of Big History based on self-
• rganising complexity using our present

understanding of non-equilibrium thermodynamics and dissipative structures

• The Self-Organizing Universe (1980)

Sub-title: Scientific and human implications of the emerging paradigm of evolution

• In it he described the rise of complexity both

in individual entities, as well as in collectives

• f entities

Individuals and collectives self-organise together in a co-evolutionary dynamical process

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Fig 24, p 94. “Cosmic evolution of macro- and micro-structures. … These levels mutually stimulate their evolutions.”

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• Fig 28, p 132. “The history of life on earth expresses the co-evolution of self-
• rganizing macro- and micro-systems in ever higher degrees of differentiation.”

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• Fig 32, p 175. “The transition from the sociobiological to the sociocultural phase of evolution

turns things upside down, as far as the dominant relationships in the co-evolution of macro- and micro-systems are concerned. Self-reflexive mind … sets out to re-create the

• macroworld. … [A]t the levels of culture and mankind-at-large, this is still a partially

conscious process only.”

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• Fig 43, p 224. “Schematic representation of the co-evolutionary process levels in

the sociobiological and sociocultural phases of evolution…”

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• Fig 40, p 208. “The evolving role of communication in the three major

phases of evolution.”

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• Fig 45, p 257. “Phase shift between cultural guiding images and

sociocultural development. In one phase the cultural image leads, in another it lags behind. After O.W. Markley (1976).”

Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness

• Jantsch died in Dec 1980, before he could widely

popularise these ideas.

• His final work was an edited book, The Evolutionary

Vision: Towards a unifying paradigm of physical, biological, and sociocultural evolution (1981).

• The last chapter of concluding remarks was his Outlook

for the EV.

• Essentially the last thing he wrote on this topic, is as

follows: Jantsch’s legacy

4 Aug 2012 6 Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness “… the greatest importance of today’s evolutionary vision may lie not in its present propositions and concepts, but in the new questions it poses in many areas of scientific endeavour and especially in the unifying transdisciplinary ‘pull’ it exerts in these areas.” (p210) “Of [great] importance will be a precise formulation of the relations between biological/ecological/sociobiological evolution on the one hand and psychological/sociocultural evolution on the other. … The evolutionary vision opens up the possibility of understanding all creative dynamics in a unified way.” (p212) Jantsch’s last words… Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness “The evolutionary vision is itself a manifestation of evolution. The reward for its elaboration will not only be a new (or partly revived) natural philosophy or an improved academic understanding of how we are interconnected with evolutionary dynamics at all levels, but also an immensely practical philosophy to guide us in a time of creative instability and major restructuration of the human world … . With such an orientation, science will also become more realistic and meaningful for the concerns of human life. It will be not merely an end product of human creativity, but a key to its further unfolding in all domains.” (p213) Jantsch’s last words…

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• Erich Jantsch (1929-1980)
• Austrian astrophysicist who became a futurist &

“integral theorist”, formulated a model of cosmic evolution / big history, & hoped for a way to unify this with psychological & cultural evolution.

• Ken Wilber (1949- )
• American philosopher who started out studying

psychology & consciousness, formulated a model of psycho-socio-cultural evolution, and – finding & incorporating Jantsch – ended up with a unified model

• f physical & psycho-cultural evolution.

Transition… Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness

• hugely syncretic integrative synthesis of the work of

hundreds of researchers, Eastern and Western, ancient and contemporary, in the sciences, the humanities and esoteric & spiritual traditions

• seeks after broad-brush-stroke “orienting generalisations”
• not precise law-like statements
• has gone through several phases (5 so far) since 1977
• is very complicated and immensely subtle
• takes a fair while to “grok” this model
• This is a very simplified exposition of just one aspect of
• ne part of the full model …

The Wilber Integral Model, in brief:

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY

INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE Micro-evolution Macro-evolution

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC PREHENSION

13 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 12 11 10 9 8

IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC GALAXIES

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL) INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE INTERIOR EXTERIOR

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 9 8

PREHENSION IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE

Increasing complexity of ‘external’ material structural

• rganisation

Increasing complexity of ‘interior’ conscious lived experience

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 9 8

PREHENSION IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE INTERIOR EXTERIOR

4 Aug 2012 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 9 8

PREHENSION IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE INTERIOR EXTERIOR

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 9 8

PREHENSION IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE INTERIOR EXTERIOR

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

ATOMS MOLECULES PROKARYOTES EUKARYOTES NEURONAL ORGANISMS NEURAL CORD REPTILIAN BRAIN STEM LIMBIC SYSTEM NEOCORTEX (TRIUNE BRAIN) COMPLEX NEOCORTEX SF1 SF2 SF3

ORGANISM (BEHAVIOURAL) CONSCIOUSNESS (INTENTIONAL) ORGANISATION (SOCIAL) WORLDVIEW (CULTURAL)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

PHYSICAL- PLEROMATIC PROTOPLASMIC LOCOMOTIVE UROBORIC TYPHONIC VEGETATIVE ARCHAIC MAGIC MYTHIC RATIONAL CENTAURIC

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 13 12 11 10 9 8

PREHENSION IRRITABILITY SENSATION PERCEPTION IMPULSE EMOTION SYMBOLS CONCEPTS CONOP FORMOP VISION-LOGIC

13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 1 2 3 4 5

GALAXIES PLANETS GAIA SYSTEM HETEROTROPHIC ECOSYSTEMS SOCIETIES WITH DIVISIONS OF LABOUR " GROUPS / FAMILIES " TRIBES TRIBAL / VILLAGE EARLY STATE / EMPIRE NATION / STATE PLANETARY FORAGING HORTICULTURAL AGRARIAN INDUSTRIAL INFORMATIONAL

Adapted from Wilber INDIVIDUAL COLLECTIVE INTERIOR EXTERIOR

Swinburne

Singular Plural Interior Exterior

subjective

• bjective

inter-subjective inter-objective

inside

• utside

inside

• utside

inside

• utside

inside

• utside

#1 #2 #5 #6 #7 #8 #3 #4

Complexity + Consciousness

#1 phenomenology #2 structuralism #3 hermeneutics #4 ethnomethodology #5 autopoiesis #6 empiricism #7 social autopoiesis #8 systems theory

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Multiple Methods – 8 generic classes of methodology

4 Aug 2012 12 Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness

• Is a model of Big History: complexity + consciousness
• Broad “orienting generalisations” wrt past evolution
• Hypothesises correlations between external material structural

complexity & internally-experienced consciousness

• A useful framework for further exploration of hypotheses
• Allows for consideration of cross-paradigmatic multi-method research

agendas across several scales & at appropriate complexity levels

• When considered with respect to UL quadrant, sketches contours

regarding potential future developments in individual & thence collective consciousness, and the social structures that might follow from this…

• Might be a useful first-approx model for future Big History?
• You never know your luck in the hypothesising game! ☺

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Utility of the model Swinburne Complexity + Consciousness

Jantsch E. The self-organizing universe: Scientific and human implications of the emerging paradigm of evolution. New York: Pergamon Press; 1980. Jantsch E, editor. The evolutionary vision: Toward a unifying paradigm of physical, biological and sociocultural evolution. Boulder, CO, USA: Westview Press; 1981. Jantsch E, Waddington CH, editors. Evolution and consciousness: Human systems in transition. Reading, MA, USA: Addison-Wesley; 1976. Wilber K. The collected works of Ken Wilber. Boston: Shambhala Pubs.; 1999-

• 2000. vols1-4 published 1999; vols 5-8 published 2000.

Wilber K. Integral spirituality: A startling new role for religion in the modern and postmodern world. Boston: Shambhala Pubs; 2006. Wilber K. The integral vision: A very short introduction to the revolutionary Integral approach to life, God, the universe, and everything. Boston: Shambhala Pubs; 2007.

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References