Exocortex
Encyclopedia
An exocortex is a theoretical artificial external information processing system that would augment a brain's biological high-level cognitive processes.
An individual's exocortex would be composed of external memory modules
, processors
, IO devices
and software systems that would interact with, and augment, a person's biological brain
. Typically this interaction is described as being conducted through a direct brain-computer interface
, making these extensions functionally part of the individual's mind
.
Individuals with significant exocortices could be classified as cyborg
s or transhuman
s.
Living Digital provided one description of the concept:
, which originally meant bark
but is used in neuroscience
for the outer bark-like layer of the brain that is the site of most sophisticated cognitive information processing. It was coined in allusion
to the neocortex
(literally 'new bark'), the newest part of the mammal
ian brain (in evolutionary history), believed to be responsible for the highest human cognitive abilities including conscious thought, spatial reasoning, and sensory perception. Thus the terminology suggests a progression from reptilian thought (the older parts of the brain) through human (neocortex) to high-level human or even supra-human cognitive processing capabilities (exocortex).
designed and built the first general purpose wearable computer. Later on he became one of the early pioneers in using wearable computers for augmented
and computer-mediated reality. Although he does not refer to it as such, his personal wearable computer could be considered an exocortex. Running applications like the remembrance agent on his wearable computer enhances his natural mental capabilities.
and evolutionary psychology
.
together, would prove to complement each others strengths to such a degree that many of the pure artificial intelligence
systems envisioned at the time by optimistic researchers would prove unnecessary:
A DARPA contemporary of Licklider, Douglas Engelbart
, was thinking along similar lines in the field of computer science. In 1962, Engelbart authored Augmenting Human Intellect in which he details how to augment human intellectual effectiveness by exploiting the technology of the then emerging computer:
From this basis, the concept of an exocortex, the direct coupling of the human mind with computers to leverage their respective complementary strengths, can be viewed as a result of the ever increasing symbiotic coupling between human and computers.
of Queen's University
. Donald, in the 1990 book Origins of the Modern Mind as well as later papers, proposed an evolutionary model of the mind, from a functionary perspective, from its origins in prehistoric apes to the modern human being. Donald focuses significant attention on the use that modern humans make of external symbolic storage and manipulation systems—the range of technologies from cuneiforms
, hieroglyphics, and ideogram
s to alphabetic languages, mathematics
and now computer
s. From Donald's perspective, these external symbolic systems have allowed for the functional reorganization of the human mind in how it deals with the world.
Thus to Donald, the human mind has long been a hybrid structure built from the vestiges of earlier biological stages and combined with our new external symbolic systems. The development of an exocortex, which could result in significant functional reallocation, again fits well within this long established trend.
-level brain-computer interface technologies in the spirit of Licklider's and Engelbart's original visions.
and in The Peace War
by Vernor Vinge
, both published in 1984. More recently Vinge, in A Fire Upon the Deep
and several short stories, described the functional effects of what are essentially several kinds of exocortices - both those composed of computational elements, and those enabled by high-bandwidth communication between groups of beings. Peter F. Hamilton
's Night's Dawn trilogy
also describes in detail similar technological beings.
Charles Stross
, the Hugo Award
-nominated hard science fiction
writer, has led the adoption of the term exocortex within science fiction circles. Beginning in 2004, Stross made use of the term in Elector, a short story published in the September issue of Asimov's Science Fiction
. Stross made more extensive uses the term exocortex and its derivatives in Accelerando, his 2005 novel.
While Stross himself does not provide an explicit definition of the term, a few passages indicate his meaning:
The Wikibooks Accelerando Technical Companion provides this explanation:
:
that serve cognitive functions has brought what could be considered a proto-exocortex into existence. Wikipedia
itself is an example, as technological interfaces enable inter-brain co-operation on high-level cognitive tasks. The fulfillment of the initial vision of Licklider and Engelbart suggests that continued development along this path is likely.
Currently, true exocortices remain speculative. The main issue is that the required underlying technology is yet to be produced by the scientific research fields of (1) cognitive neuroscience
, (2) computational neuroscience
and (3) neural engineering
.
An individual's exocortex would be composed of external memory modules
Computer storage
Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, refers to computer components and recording media that retain digital data. Data storage is one of the core functions and fundamental components of computers....
, processors
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
, IO devices
Computer hardware
Personal computer hardware are component devices which are typically installed into or peripheral to a computer case to create a personal computer upon which system software is installed including a firmware interface such as a BIOS and an operating system which supports application software that...
and software systems that would interact with, and augment, a person's biological brain
Brain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
. Typically this interaction is described as being conducted through a direct brain-computer interface
Brain-computer interface
A brain–computer interface , sometimes called a direct neural interface or a brain–machine interface , is a direct communication pathway between the brain and an external device...
, making these extensions functionally part of the individual's mind
Mind
The concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
.
Individuals with significant exocortices could be classified as cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
s or transhuman
Transhuman
Transhuman or trans-human is a term that has been defined and redefined many times in history. In its contemporary usage, “transhuman” refers to an intermediary form between the human and the hypothetical posthuman.-History of hypotheses:...
s.
Living Digital provided one description of the concept:
Etymology
The noun exocortex is composed of the Greek-derived prefix exo-, meaning external or outside, and the Latin noun cortexCortex (anatomy)
In anatomy and zoology the cortex is the outermost layer of an organ. Organs with well-defined cortical layers include kidneys, adrenal glands, ovaries, the thymus, and portions of the brain, including the cerebral cortex, the most well-known of all cortices.The cerebellar cortex is the thin gray...
, which originally meant bark
Bark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
but is used in neuroscience
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
for the outer bark-like layer of the brain that is the site of most sophisticated cognitive information processing. It was coined in allusion
Allusion
An allusion is a figure of speech that makes a reference to, or representation of, people, places, events, literary work, myths, or works of art, either directly or by implication. M. H...
to the neocortex
Neocortex
The neocortex , also called the neopallium and isocortex , is a part of the brain of mammals. It is the outer layer of the cerebral hemispheres, and made up of six layers, labelled I to VI...
(literally 'new bark'), the newest part of the mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
ian brain (in evolutionary history), believed to be responsible for the highest human cognitive abilities including conscious thought, spatial reasoning, and sensory perception. Thus the terminology suggests a progression from reptilian thought (the older parts of the brain) through human (neocortex) to high-level human or even supra-human cognitive processing capabilities (exocortex).
Specific applications
In 1981 Steve MannSteve Mann
Steven Mann , is a tenured professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto.-Education:...
designed and built the first general purpose wearable computer. Later on he became one of the early pioneers in using wearable computers for augmented
Augmented reality
Augmented reality is a live, direct or indirect, view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. It is related to a more general concept called mediated reality, in which a view of reality is...
and computer-mediated reality. Although he does not refer to it as such, his personal wearable computer could be considered an exocortex. Running applications like the remembrance agent on his wearable computer enhances his natural mental capabilities.
Intellectual background
The concept of an exocortex has intellectual roots both in the fields of computer scienceComputer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
and evolutionary psychology
Evolutionary psychology
Evolutionary psychology is an approach in the social and natural sciences that examines psychological traits such as memory, perception, and language from a modern evolutionary perspective. It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations, that is, the functional...
.
Computer science roots
Within computer science, the seeds were planted by the DARPA associated researcher J.C.R. Licklider. Within his speculative 1960 paper Man-Computer Symbiosis, Licklider outlined his vision that humans and the new technology of computers, if tightly-coupledCoupling (computer science)
In computer science, coupling or dependency is the degree to which each program module relies on each one of the other modules.Coupling is usually contrasted with cohesion. Low coupling often correlates with high cohesion, and vice versa...
together, would prove to complement each others strengths to such a degree that many of the pure artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
systems envisioned at the time by optimistic researchers would prove unnecessary:
A DARPA contemporary of Licklider, Douglas Engelbart
Douglas Engelbart
Douglas Carl Engelbart is an American inventor, and an early computer and internet pioneer. He is best known for his work on the challenges of human-computer interaction, resulting in the invention of the computer mouse, and the development of hypertext, networked computers, and precursors to GUIs...
, was thinking along similar lines in the field of computer science. In 1962, Engelbart authored Augmenting Human Intellect in which he details how to augment human intellectual effectiveness by exploiting the technology of the then emerging computer:
From this basis, the concept of an exocortex, the direct coupling of the human mind with computers to leverage their respective complementary strengths, can be viewed as a result of the ever increasing symbiotic coupling between human and computers.
Psychology roots
The exocortex concept also has roots in evolutionary psychology as a result of Merlin DonaldMerlin Donald
Merlin Wilfred Donald is a Canadian psychologist and cognitive neuroscientist, and a researcher, educator, and author in the corresponding fields.-Biography:...
of Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
. Donald, in the 1990 book Origins of the Modern Mind as well as later papers, proposed an evolutionary model of the mind, from a functionary perspective, from its origins in prehistoric apes to the modern human being. Donald focuses significant attention on the use that modern humans make of external symbolic storage and manipulation systems—the range of technologies from cuneiforms
Cuneiform script
Cuneiform script )) is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. Emerging in Sumer around the 30th century BC, with predecessors reaching into the late 4th millennium , cuneiform writing began as a system of pictographs...
, hieroglyphics, and ideogram
Ideogram
An ideogram or ideograph is a graphic symbol that represents an idea or concept. Some ideograms are comprehensible only by familiarity with prior convention; others convey their meaning through pictorial resemblance to a physical object, and thus may also be referred to as pictograms.Examples of...
s to alphabetic languages, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
and now computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
s. From Donald's perspective, these external symbolic systems have allowed for the functional reorganization of the human mind in how it deals with the world.
Thus to Donald, the human mind has long been a hybrid structure built from the vestiges of earlier biological stages and combined with our new external symbolic systems. The development of an exocortex, which could result in significant functional reallocation, again fits well within this long established trend.
Cognitive science origin
In November 1998 the specific term exocortex was coined by researcher Ben Houston. Houston coined the term to refer concisely to tightly-coupled cognitionCognition
In science, cognition refers to mental processes. These processes include attention, remembering, producing and understanding language, solving problems, and making decisions. Cognition is studied in various disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science...
-level brain-computer interface technologies in the spirit of Licklider's and Engelbart's original visions.
Use in science fiction
Speculative devices which fit the definition of exocortices were described in hard science fiction long before the term was coined; examples appear in Neuromancer by William GibsonWilliam Gibson
William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:-Association football:*Will Gibson , Scottish footballer...
and in The Peace War
The Peace War
The Peace War is a science fiction novel by American writer Vernor Vinge, about authoritarianism and technological progress. It was first published as a serial in Analog in 1984, and then appeared in book form shortly afterward. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1985...
by Vernor Vinge
Vernor Vinge
Vernor Steffen Vinge is a retired San Diego State University Professor of Mathematics, computer scientist, and science fiction author. He is best known for his Hugo Award-winning novels and novellas A Fire Upon the Deep , A Deepness in the Sky , Rainbows End , Fast Times at Fairmont High ...
, both published in 1984. More recently Vinge, in A Fire Upon the Deep
A Fire Upon the Deep
A Fire Upon the Deep is a science fiction novel by American writer Vernor Vinge, a space opera involving superhuman intelligences, aliens, variable physics, space battles, love, betrayal, genocide, and a conversation medium resembling Usenet...
and several short stories, described the functional effects of what are essentially several kinds of exocortices - both those composed of computational elements, and those enabled by high-bandwidth communication between groups of beings. Peter F. Hamilton
Peter F. Hamilton
Peter F. Hamilton is a British author. He is best known for writing space opera. As of the publication of his tenth novel in 2004, his works had sold over two million copies worldwide.- Biography :...
's Night's Dawn trilogy
The Night's Dawn Trilogy
British author Peter F. Hamilton's The Night's Dawn Trilogy consists of three science fiction novels: The Reality Dysfunction , The Neutronium Alchemist , and The Naked God...
also describes in detail similar technological beings.
Charles Stross
Charles Stross
Charles David George "Charlie" Stross is a British writer of science fiction, Lovecraftian horror and fantasy. He was born in Leeds.Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera...
, the Hugo Award
Hugo Award
The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
-nominated hard science fiction
Hard science fiction
Hard science fiction is a category of science fiction characterized by an emphasis on scientific or technical detail, or on scientific accuracy, or on both. The term was first used in print in 1957 by P. Schuyler Miller in a review of John W. Campbell, Jr.'s Islands of Space in Astounding Science...
writer, has led the adoption of the term exocortex within science fiction circles. Beginning in 2004, Stross made use of the term in Elector, a short story published in the September issue of Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
. Stross made more extensive uses the term exocortex and its derivatives in Accelerando, his 2005 novel.
While Stross himself does not provide an explicit definition of the term, a few passages indicate his meaning:
The Wikibooks Accelerando Technical Companion provides this explanation:
Popular usage
While initial recognition of the exocortex concept was nonexistent, this has changed as a result of Charles Stross's recent publications and the growing awareness of brain-computer interfacing. The term and concept of an exocortex has both been applied (i.e. "Suffered a Stroke in my Exocortex") and noted as a novel interesting word (i.e. "Found Words: Exocortex") by various bloggers. Here are some additional examples of proper contextual usage: http://swhack.com/logs/2005-06-22, and http://www.decafbad.com/blog/2005/06/23/quick_mind_interface_thoughts. The concept has been described in the March 2006 issue of Living Digital. James Hughen wrote in an essay entitled "What comes after humans?" that appeared in the Nov 16, 2006 issue of the New ScientistNew Scientist
New Scientist is a weekly non-peer-reviewed English-language international science magazine, which since 1996 has also run a website, covering recent developments in science and technology for a general audience. Founded in 1956, it is published by Reed Business Information Ltd, a subsidiary of...
:
Future prospects
If one widens the definition of an exocortex, one can see that computational elements are already used as supporting elements of biological brains, and growing dependence on parts of the InternetInternet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
that serve cognitive functions has brought what could be considered a proto-exocortex into existence. Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
itself is an example, as technological interfaces enable inter-brain co-operation on high-level cognitive tasks. The fulfillment of the initial vision of Licklider and Engelbart suggests that continued development along this path is likely.
Currently, true exocortices remain speculative. The main issue is that the required underlying technology is yet to be produced by the scientific research fields of (1) cognitive neuroscience
Cognitive neuroscience
Cognitive neuroscience is an academic field concerned with the scientific study of biological substrates underlying cognition, with a specific focus on the neural substrates of mental processes. It addresses the questions of how psychological/cognitive functions are produced by the brain...
, (2) computational neuroscience
Computational neuroscience
Computational neuroscience is the study of brain function in terms of the information processing properties of the structures that make up the nervous system...
and (3) neural engineering
Neural engineering
Neural engineering is a discipline within biomedical engineering that uses engineering techniques to understand, repair, replace, enhance, or otherwise exploit the properties of neural systems...
.
See also
- MemexMemexThe memex is the name given by Vannevar Bush to the hypothetical proto-hypertext system he described in his 1945 The Atlantic Monthly article As We May Think...
- Project XanaduProject XanaduProject Xanadu was the first hypertext project, founded in 1960 by Ted Nelson. Administrators of Project Xanadu have declared it an improvement over the World Wide Web, with mission statement: "Today's popular software simulates paper...
- HypermediaHypermediaHypermedia is a computer-based information retrieval system that enables a user to gain or provide access to texts, audio and video recordings, photographs and computer graphics related to a particular subject.Hypermedia is a term created by Ted Nelson....
- BrainBrainThe brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
- CortexCerebral cortexThe cerebral cortex is a sheet of neural tissue that is outermost to the cerebrum of the mammalian brain. It plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It is constituted of up to six horizontal layers, each of which has a different...
- NeocortexNeocortexThe neocortex , also called the neopallium and isocortex , is a part of the brain of mammals. It is the outer layer of the cerebral hemispheres, and made up of six layers, labelled I to VI...
- MindMindThe concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
- CognitionCognitionIn science, cognition refers to mental processes. These processes include attention, remembering, producing and understanding language, solving problems, and making decisions. Cognition is studied in various disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science...
- ConsciousnessConsciousnessConsciousness is a term that refers to the relationship between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined as: subjectivity, awareness, the ability to experience or to feel, wakefulness, having a sense of selfhood, and the executive control system of the mind...
External links
- Man-Computer Symbiosis paper, JCR Licklider, March 1960.
- Augmenting Human Intellect paper, Douglas Engelbart, October 1962.
- Origins of the Modern Mind book, Merlin Donald, 1990, ISBN 0674644840.
- Exocortex definition, Ben Houston, May 2000.
- Elector short story, Charles Stross, 2004.
- Accelerando novel, Charles Stross, 2005, ISBN 0441012841.
- Accelerando Technical Companion, WikiBooks, 2005.
- Found Words: Exocortex False Positives blog posting, Ian Irving, July 2005.