Collective Brain as Dynamical System

Abstract

The concept of the collective brain has appeared recently as a subject of intensive scientific discussions from theological. biological. ecological, social, and mathematical viewpoints. It can be introduced as a set of simple units of intelligence (say, neurons) which can communicate by exchange of information without explicit global control. The objectives of each unit may be partly compatible and partly contradictory, i.e., the units can cooperate or compete. The exchanging information may be at times inconsistent, often imperfect, non-deterministic. and delayed. Nevertheless. observations of working insect colonies, social systems, and scientific communities suggest that such collectives of single units appear to be very successful in achieving global objectives. as well as in learning, memorizing, generalizing and predicting, due to their flexibility, adaptability to environmental changes, and creativity.