The Semantic Sphere 1: Computation, Cognition and Information Economy

Chapter 12

The Hypercortex

Having recalled the essential role played by media and symbolic systems in human cognition, I will now paint a general portrait of the contemporary digital medium and its likely evolution. I will elaborate on the idea I mentioned in preceding chapters, that the IEML semantic machine paves the way for the emergence of a Hypercortex capable of reflecting human collective intelligence by using the storage and calculation power of the digital medium. As shown in Figure 12.1, this chapter gives an overview of the hypercortical cognition that will be contained in the digital medium.

12.1. The role of media and symbolic systems in cognition

There is no doubt that human cognition is based on biologically determined cerebral organization and neural activity¹. Nevertheless, recent decades have seen the publication of an impressive quantity of research on intellectual technologies and symbolic tools². The main idea that unifies this interdisciplinary area of research is that mechanisms of memory, communication media and symbolic systems – all of which are cultural – play an essential role in shaping cognitive skills, both individually and collectively³.

Figure 12.1. Position of Chapter 12 on the conceptual map

The invention of writing permitted the development of systematically organized knowledge (lists, tables, archives, accounting and complex hermeneutic procedures) ...