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Evolutionary epistemology: Reviewing and reviving with new data the research programme for distributed biological
1Department of Life Sciences, College of Health and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, UB8 3PH, United Kingdom.
Bio Systems
|December 5, 2017
Summary
This study redefines biological intelligence, proposing that all organisms, from single cells to the biosphere, exhibit intelligence. It introduces a new research agenda for distributed biological intelligence, emphasizing information processing in organism-environment interactions.
Area of Science:
- Integrative biology
- Philosophy of science
- Evolutionary theory
Background:
- Evolutionary Epistemology (EE) principles are supported by various scientific fields but lack clear formulation for empirical research.
- Existing research has not explicitly acknowledged or utilized EE, hindering its integration into scientific discourse.
- A need exists to reformulate EE to better connect with empirical research and guide future studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review evidence supporting Evolutionary Epistemology (EE).
- To reformulate EE principles for empirical research, proposing the Research Programme for Distributed Biological Intelligence.
- To redefine intelligence as the capacity for information gain, processing, and phenotypic translation (IGPT).
Main Methods:
- Literature review of studies across microbiology, cell biology, plant biology, biomimetics, synthetic biology, and philosophy of science.
- Conceptual reformulation of Evolutionary Epistemology (EE) principles.
- Definition of biological intelligence through the IGPT (information-gain-process-translate) framework.
Main Results:
- Identified a gap between empirical evidence supporting EE and its explicit acknowledgment in research.
- Proposed a new framework: Research Programme for Distributed Biological Intelligence.
- Defined intelligence (IGPT) as a universal biological phenomenon, not limited to neural systems.
- Established key principles: intelligence is universal, cell-based, hierarchical (bacteria to Gaia), information-centric, and cybernetic.
Conclusions:
- Biological intelligence is a universal phenomenon, with single cells as the basic unit, extending hierarchically to the biosphere.
- The IGPT framework and cybernetic view of organism-environment interactions offer a new research agenda for biological intelligence.
- Reframing intelligence beyond neural systems provides a more inclusive and accurate understanding of life's adaptive capacities.
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