DynaPsych Table of Contents
Mirror Neurons, Mirrorhouses,
and the Algebraic Structure of the
Self
Ben
Goertzel1,
Onar Aam, F. Tony Smith, Kent Palmer
1Novamente
LLC
April
19, 2007
Abstract.
Recent neurological and
psychological research suggests that the individual human mind is
effectively
modeled as involving a group of interacting social actors: both various
subselves representing coherent aspects of personality; and virtual
actors
embodying Òinternalizations of others,Ó often biologically associated
with
collections of mirror neurons.
Taking up this theme, we study the mathematical and conceptual
structure
of sets of inter-observing actors, noting that this structure is
mathematically
isomorphic to the structure of physical entities called Òmirrorhouses.Ó Mirrorhouses are naturally modeled in
terms of abstract algebras such as quaternions and octonions (which
also play a
central role in physics), which leads to the conclusion that the
presence
within a single human mind of multiple inter-observing actors naturally
gives rise
to a mirrorhouse-type cognitive structure and hence to a quaternionic
and
octonionic algebraic structure as a significant aspect of human
intelligence. Similar
conclusions would apply to nonhuman intelligences such as AIÕs, we
suggest, so
long as these intelligences included empathic social modeling (and/or
other
cognitive dynamics leading to the creation of simultaneously active
subselves
or other internal autonomous actors) as a significant component.
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