In this seminar we present our work related to the vision of the Global Brain and the future of human society as a global cognitive system. We discuss distributed social governance as a bootstrapping mechanism and mobilization system for the Global Brain and its evolution as a cognitive agency. We also argue, based on the concepts of fragility and antifragility, why a World of Views is likely to be the only feasible configuration capable of sustaining the Singularity as a process of intelligence escaping its biological constraints. Our envisioning of the brink of Singularity begins with redefining Singularity as an historical process rather than an event. It is the process of continuous intelligence expansion since the beginning of human civilization. We emphasize the value and significance of the continuity of this process rather than the intermediate stages through which it passes. By that, we position the brink of Singularity situation within the continuum of human evolution, the evolution of life and evolution as a universal process. We raise the question what would be the desired configuration and dynamics of the sociotechnological system able to facilitate open-ended intelligence expansion. A World of Views is our vision of such a configuration. It is based on developing a framework of distributed cognition adapted for the world sociotechnological system. We also use this framework for asking general questions about intelligence expansion. See also paper (forthcoming book chapter): A World of Views: A World of Interacting Post-human Intelligences http://arxiv.org/abs/1410.6915

1. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
A World of Views: the cognitive
development of the Global Brain
Viktoras Veitas vveitas@gmail.com
Weaver (David Weinbaum)
space9weaver@gmail.com
Global Brain Institute
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
June 27, 2014
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 1 / 21

2. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
How do we think about systems
Three interrelated perspectives:
1 Factual necessity -based;
2 Value -based;
3 Pragmatics -based;
Social systems: value -based is most important.
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 2 / 21

3. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
The factual situation of a complex world
Hyper-connectivity;
Reflexivity;
Accelerating change;
Increasing complexity;
Increased fragility;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 3 / 21

4. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Values: what do we want
Open-ended intelligence expansion:
The determinant of the ’greater good’ and ’well
being’ of both of individuals and collectives at all
scales.
Intelligence is (a working definition):
The progressive process of sense-making of
self(other) / environment/ universe;
Intelligence expansion is:
an increasing ability of sense-making.
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 4 / 21

5. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Pragmatic perspective
Two viable future trajectories:
1 Limitting complexity by top-down regulation.
2 Intelligence expansion and antifragile strategy.
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 5 / 21

6. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Sense-making
Intelligence expansion ⇔ Cognitive development ⇔
Sense-making;
Sense-making is:
A motivated, continuous effort to understand
connections (e.g. among people, objects, places,
events etc.) in order to anticipate their trajectories
and act effectively. [Klein et al., 2006, p. 3]
Aspects of sense-making:
1 Identity and identification;
2 Retrospection;
3 Enaction;
4 Ongoing;
5 Reflexive;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 6 / 21

7. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Intelligent (cognitive) agents
Intelligence expansion ⇔ Cognitive development ⇔
Sense-making;
Interactions between individuals + emergence of
individuals;
A cognitive agent - a sense-making machine which
does:
1 Data compression;
2 Filtering and forgetting;
3 ’Bending’ the environment;
Correct unit of analysis is:
individual - milieu dyad;
Understanding process is more informative than
analysis of static properties of already individuated
entities;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 7 / 21

8. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
The process of individuation = cognitive
development = sense-making
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 8 / 21

9. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Cognitive development
Intelligence expansion ⇔ Cognitive development ⇔
Sense-making;
Balancing of the subject/object relationship
across the boundary of an agent
A recursive cycle of:
1 Being subject to sensory experience;
2 Subject/ object differentiation;
3 Holding an object;
4 Manipulating the object;
Stages of the cognitive development = stable
periods of the process.
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 9 / 21

10. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Sense-making ⇒ a worldview
A worldview is a gestalt perception in relation to
self, others, society, and the cosmos at large;
Every worldview is essentially subjective and
depends on the choices of the agents sharing them;
A worldview is an integral system of sense-making;
The intelligence expansion is synonymous with the
evolution of worldview;
A worldview emerges during sense-making and
defines the entity holding it;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 10 / 21

11. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Worldviews
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 11 / 21

12. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
A World of Views
Future world system as a distributed multi-scaled
network of agents that embody a variety of
worldviews;
Requirements for a worldview:
1 Diversity;
2 Modularity;
3 Openness;
A World of Views is a desired and plausible
future developmental stage of society
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 12 / 21

13. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Cognitive development of the
sociotechnological system
Intelligence expansion ⇔ Cognitive development ⇔
Sense-making;
In the cognitive development on the scale of society
we relate to collectives as agents;
Cognitive agent: any actor possessing agential
capabilities;
A process of individuation / sense-making
punctuated by quasi-stable states;
The differentiating feature is the level of cognitive
development;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 13 / 21

14. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Society of Mind and the Mind of Society
Complementary perspectives;
1 A mind is a collective (Minsky);
2 A collective is a mind (Burns and Engdahl);
The difference is a point of view;
Formal measure: information integration
[Tononi, 2004];
Social institutions are:
Embodiments of worldviews;
Products of continuous sense-making - cognitive
development;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 14 / 21

15. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Formation of boundaries I
Evolutionary activity: differentiating object from
subject + relating to it (integration);
Emergence of boundaries between collectives at
different scales;
Boundary: mediates two collectives operating at
different scales and embodies the sense-making
process;
Intelligence expansion across physical, biological, and
psychological and social scales;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 15 / 21

16. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Formation of boundaries II
The collectivity of sense-making is driven by:
Surrounding environment - collective of agents;
The interaction of internalized objects within the
agent
The interplay between these two aspects forms an
individual-milieu dyad;
The holding environment is as necessary for the
development of an agent as its internal
processes;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 16 / 21

17. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
The Cognitive Development of the Global
Brain
The evolution towards a Global Brain is a process of
cognitive development;
”Mapping” stages of development of the Global
Brain;
Development of the Global Brain cannot happen
without a development of humans, artifacts and
social institutions;
Distributed governance in a world of views is
the next phase in the cognitive development of
human society;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 17 / 21

18. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Distributed Governance
An enabling environment and culture for the
cognitive development of social institutions;
Distributed governance system needs to facilitate the
following functions:
1 Allow for the co-existence of diverse worldviews and
social institutions;
2 Provide an effective medium of communication,
dialogue and co-evolution;
3 Propagate successful experiments and containing
failures (antifragility);
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 18 / 21

19. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Points of discussion
We do not provide specific recipes for regimes of
governance;
We formulate principles of the framework which
enables governance regimes to self-organize;
The Global Brain misses the encompassing milieu,
therefore the development of its agential capabilities
will be arrested beyond a certain stage;
The World of Views approach maintains multiplicity
at the highest level, providing an ecology of
challenge, co-evolution and differentiation necessary
for open ended cognitive development;
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 19 / 21

20. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
Proceed at own risk
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 20 / 21

21. A World of Views
Viktoras Veitas
&
Weaver
Introduction
Systemic thinking
The sociotechnological
system
Current situation
Values
Pragmatic perspective
Intelligence expansion
Sense-making
Cognitive agents
Cognitive development
Worldviews
A World of Views
Intelligent society
Development of society
Mind of Society of Mind
Boundaries
Development of GB
Distributed governance
Principles
Points of discussion
References
References I
Klein, G., Moon, B., and Hoffman, R. (2006).
1. Making Sense of Sensemaking 1: Alternative
Perspectives.
IEEE Intelligent Systems, 21(4):70–73.
Tononi, G. (2004).
An information integration theory of consciousness.
BMC Neuroscience, 5(1):42.
Available from: http://www.biomedcentral.com/
1471-2202/5/42/abstract.
Viktoras Veitas & Weaver (ECCO/GBI) A World of Views June 27, 2014 21 / 21