Epigenetic Rules: some clarification

The central concept expressed in E.O.Wilson’s book Consilience: the unity of knowledge (1997) is that of epigenetic rules. Collectively speaking they are inherited behaviours and ideas that all humans have in common. They are frequently expressed in the arts and in social taboos.

Epigenetic rules could be thought of as strong instinct or innate comportment before they are modified by the natural and cultural environment. They represent the basic elements of human nature. We could also say that it is the "uncarved block" described by Taoist philosophers, or the "noble savage" of Rousseau before it is modified by culture.

The existence of epigenetic rules for elaborate conventions such as totemism, elder councils and religious ceremonies predispose people to invent them (Wilson, 1998 p.181). We could argue that we are born with an epigenetic rule for God. That is, we are predisposed to believe in God regardless of whether He exists or not, as Voltaire once said "If God did not exist we would invent Him."

Super-normal stimuli as essences

Super-normal stimuli indicate that animal species instinctively direct their evolution . That is, as we have seen individuals will select mates and offsring that are the strongest and healthiest following very specific cues. When these cues or stimuli are isolated they override the animal's "common sense" or more accurately reveal their lack of it.

For example, the male silver washed fritillary butterfly has evolved to pursue the fluttering brown and black wings of the female. But experiments show that what primarily excites this insect are simply the colours in motion, the female herself is somewhat secondary.

The biological significance is that the insect has evolved to see these colours in motion as indicators of fertility, and there is no apparent upper limit. This means that the butterfly will seek the most fertile female possible as indicated by the brightest and fastest moving colours.

What we are dealing with here is, for the butterfly, the visual 'essence' of its sexual drive. In humans one such essence for males is 'delicacy', and this may be an indicator of youthfulness, fertility and virginity.

The theme of 'delicacy' is a frequent subject of love poetry. A very powerful representation of it is given in E.E.Cummings' poem 'somewhere i have never travelled', presented below. Here the poet describes the overwhelming force of the fragile. I will not give any explication of it as it is straight forward, and any analysis would further undermine it. The poem featured in Woody Allen's movie Hannah and Her Sisters (1986).


somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond any experience, your eyes have their silence:in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me, or which i cannot touch because they are too near

your slightest look easily will unclose me though i have closed myself as fingers, you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens(touching skilfully,mysteriously) her first rose

or if your wish be to close me,i and my life will shut very beautifully, suddenly,as when the heart of this flower imagines the snow carefully everywhere descending;

nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals the power of your intense fragility: whose texture compels me with the color of its countries,rendering death and forever with each breathing

(i do not know what it is about you that closes and opens; only something in me understandsthe voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody, not even the rain, has such small hands

e.e.cummings, 1931

Genes and the biosphere, Memes and the memosphere

Memes are units of culture that behave like genes. That is according to philosopher Daniel Dennett and Sue Blackmore they follow the same three step evolutionary algorithm. Firstly, both genes and memes replicate. Secondly, during copying errors or modifications may occur. Lastly, they are selected. When these three general processes occur the result is evolution.

To carry these analogy further, genes code for characteristics that help the indiviual survive in their natural environment. We could call the environment in which genes carried by species struggle for existence their substrate. The substrate of species is the ecosystem or on a larger scale the biosphere.

Of interest particular interest is the way ecosystems recovery after disturbance. In this case the ecosystem will systematically recover. Species that colonize the vacant site must pass through a series of abiotic and biotic filters. Abiotic filters are those of climate, mineral composition of soils, slope, salinty and so on. Biotic factors are the presence of other species.

But what then is the substrate in which memes compete? It is the human mind. Let us look at this for a moment. For an idea or meme to colonize a person's mind it must also pass through a series of filters. Firstly, there are the hardwired rules that determine genetically how we are predisposed to behave and make choices. E.O.Wilson has termed these 'epigenetic rules'. Secondly, the new idea may do a number of things to establish itself. It could dislodge an existing idea by proving itself better in some respect; that is, outcompete an existing idea. It may also act as an add-on or an accessory, or it may simply colonize vacant ground.

With the above description there appears to be the possibility of forming an analogy between the animal and plant communities in an ecosystem and memes in the human mind. This could be extended where the full collection of ecosystem comprises the biosphere, so to the full aggregation of human minds would represent the 'memosphere'.

To summarize this idea, it appears that not only are we able create simulations of the world through consciousness, our minds seem act like scaled down models of the natural ecosystems in which they evolved. That is, our minds are reflections of the fundamental evolutionary processes occrring in Nature. The task now at hand would be to see how far we could take this metaphor and what it could teach us about the way the mind works.

Where are we now ?

Art, philosophy and science work towards the same goal: to understand and control what we sense is going on, both within us and outside us. In regards to our internal selves, neurologist Antonio Domasio observed "the brain is the captive audience of the body".

Our minds monitor themselves as well, and we put forward explanations for what and how we think. For example, Plato's 'World of Perfect Ideas' could be thought of as a rationalization of the presence of essences and abstractions created by the visual brain in its efforts to record the particulars and complex images it sees.

Unfortunately the images the brain produces are always more perfect than the reality ad this generate 'angst' or discontentment. For neurologist Semir Zeki visual art produces these 'pure' forms and provides us with catharsis from our search for them.

In respect to controlling outside forces, some thinkers suggest that primitive cave art may be a form of sympathetic magic, that is the control of things in Nature by producing and manipulating images or models of them. I have extended this definiton to cover all art forms that represent what we consider to be dangerous and worrying. For example, Hamlet for both the author and the generations spectators it is a means to overcome our existential problems that come from consciousness.

However, the arts (including philosophies and religions) and sciences, not only give us a great deal of control and understanding over Nature and our minds, they are also responsible for directing our thoughts and lives; that is, if we choose to let them.

This brings us to the theme of the next lesson: 'memes' and cultural evolution.

The World of Perfect Ideas

The essences and the abstractions that the visual brain generates are reminiscent of Plato's forms or perfect ideas presented in The Republic. In this lesson we have explored the basics of Plato's theory using Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World as our source.

The Search for Ideals & Cultural Evolution

In the previous lessons we have seen that art may be produced out of the instinctive belief that in representing the world artistically we are magically in control of it. We have also seen that some works of art reveal to us the serial and parallel nature of our thoughts. Although it is politically incorrect to say it, we know when we are in front of "good art"by the way it speaks to us in an intensely parallel way.

In this lesson we see that abstract art can be produced as an indirect result of the brain's limited capacity to remember everything it sees. The brain seeks essences and abstractions. The brain perceived them as ideals.

Consequently, a malaise is generated in us because we are constantly producing perfect stylized images of things in the world and the world itself, but we are surrounded by particulars. According to Semir Zeki the role of the artist is to recreate or materialize these images for us, providing us with some kind of relief for our search.

We could speculate that the human character is predisposed to suffer from longing; that is, an inherent dissatisfation with the present. This may explain the addiction to consumerism and the concomitant demise of the environment to satiate it.


Abstraction in Society and Nature

We could say that products such as modern mobile phones take the best of existing models and render the older ones obsolete. In time the new model will itself be synthesized with competing products that contain innovations which in turn drive its parent forms extinct. This process is unending.

The driving force of consumerism appears to be discontentment with what one possesses. This may be in part engendered by the mind's law of abstraction.

In a society that has no contact with other cultures, abstraction of culture cannot occur, and that society would evolve very slowly if at all. In societies where there is cultural exchange, abstraction can proceed and this would lead to dissatisaction and a desire to possess the synthetic and stylized images we manufacture in our minds. In other words change begets more change.

Here now we could take the opportunity to make explicit another connection between society and Nature; that is, by linking product research and development to biological evolution. We could argue here that living organisms are analogous to commodity by being abstractions of their ancestors. In other words, the 'best' features are naturally selected and produce an organism most adapted to its current surroundings.

In summary one of the roles of art is the response to the brain's limitations. In this respect we very quickly enter into the field of neuroscience and biology.

There appears to be an analogous relationship between social evolution and evolution in Nature. This can probably be illustrated through the notion of abstraction which appears to occur in both society and Nature. It may be explained through the fact that both genes and memes are governed by the same algorithm, but that is for a later lesson (see Memes and the Memosphere etc.)

The Ecology of The Girl with the Pearl Earring

The painting Girl with Pearl Earring reveals a number of aspects about human nature:

• The brain is evolving rapidly.
• Our ability to read subtle facial expression reveals our ability to empathise and its importance as a social animal.
• Empathy has ethical significance - being able to put ourselves into the shoes of other people and into the skin of animals.
• Our brains function like parallel processors with a serial interface of the inner voice.

Firstly, owing to the fact that people see different things in it may indicate that every one’s brain is slightly different owing to genetic variation and experience. For Charles Darwin (cited in Zeki, 1999) any organ that shows a high degree of variability is one that is evolving very quickly.

Secondly, it is possible that the painting is indeed the essence of Vermeer’s daughter. In this case it contains all her possible expressions. When we look at it, our mind perceives them all simultaneously. A painting that does this is said to show simultaneous vision or ambiguity (Zeki, 1999).

Further, many students have commented that the painting reflects their mood, or 'feels' what they are feeling, and is thus ever changing. In that the painting 'empathises' with them. For my students, this is where the appeal resides.

This is an interesting observation. Empathy is the ability to feel or live the emotion of someone else. "[P]ain exhibits some characteristics of being contagious," says Somerville(2006 p.226; see also Humphrey, 1987 p.97) as she talks about the results of experiments that reveal that the brain patterns of people observing someone in pain ressembles those of the person who is suffering. Wilson(1997 p.282) would possibly call this ability 'moral apitiude'. This he postulates is an inherited characteristic that helps us co-operate with one another and this enhances our chances of survival.

Rolston(2006, pp. 51-52) argues that saving the planet will rely on our capacity to put ourselves into the skin of wild animals and to understand that they not only have value for us in terms of the extent to which they contribute to our own survival (ten Have, 2006; cf Sagoff, 2006) but that they have cares that we can identify with. It is through empathy with them that we are able to afford them respect .

Empathy reveals some aspects of the nature and origins of consciousness. Dawkins(1987, p.59)suggests that consciousness came about when we were able to produce a mental model of the world that includes oneself. This self inclusion, or knowing oneself, led to the capacity to make predictions about what someone else was thinking or feeling would be beneficial.

Psychologist Nicholas Humphrey (cited in Dawkins, 1987 p.281) develops the notion of the "inner eye" or introspection, in which social animals have the some "psychological skill". The capacity to examine our own feelings enables us to understand and detect the sentiments of others. In hierarchical societies where access to resources and mates is determined by alliances and favours from an alpha male, for example, predicting the thoughts, actions and motives based on subtle changes in the facial expression of others would be a significant advantage.

This is part of the fun or intrigue, as you will, in the game of poker - being able to call someone's bluff based on your perception of the cards, the facial expression and body language of the player. Thus, this capacity allows us to predict the intentions of an individual and thus their trustworthiness.

Nevertheless, our ability to predict the feelings of another is not always accurate. Experiments have been done where people are asked to decide whether a smile is real of fake (Click on the link and take the smile test). Results show that women are better at it than men and for that reason would probably make better poker players. However, they may not have the 'stomach' to follow through. Research has shown that when men detect someone who is cheating they receive a kind of pleasurable electric shock. Women on the other hand empathise with the cheater but don't "...get a kick out of it" (Somerville ,2009 pp. 226-227). The reason for the inaccuracy is that maybe it is a dangerous thing to be able to predict with precision what someone thinks of you (ref).

Psychologist Nicholas Humphrey (cited in Dawkins, 1987 p.281) develops the notion of the "inner eye" or introspection. The capacity to examine our own feelings enables us to understand and detect the sentiments of others. Our faces are the windows into our thoughts and feelings. We are either in state of hiding or displaying what we feel. We are all able with varying degrees of success to predict the thoughts, actions and motives based on the subtle changes in the facial expression. In hierarchical societies where access to resources and mates is determined by alliances and favours from an alpha male, being able to predict the motives and actions of others would have its advantages.

For Wilson(1997 p.282) there is a the 'dark side' of our innate ability to predict the sentiments and motives of another person. Even though we are able to feel compassion for a stranger (Somerville, 2009), we are more likely according to Wilson (1997) to be suspicious and distrustful. Xenophobia fuels tribalism and conflict.

So, empathy is strongly connected to our ability to read each others faces. If we could not for the best part it would be difficult to feel for anyone. Somerville(2009) says that pain is contagious but I would expect the other emotions are as well such as interest, joy, humour and so on, all of which are communicated in part by facial expression.

The third and last explanation of the painting is that I believe it is that the mind sees all the possible expressions but filters them giving us one at a time. This fits in with philosopher Daniel Dennett’s computer analogy of human consciousness.

In his book Consciousness Explained, Dennett explains how the brain operates using the analogy of a computer. A computer is made up of two levels: the central processor unit (CPU) and the user friendly interface. The user friendly interface runs in a serial way taking in commands one after the other. The CPU operates as though it is processing commands simultaneously. Some CPUs actually do this and they are called parallel processors.

The brain also operates on two levels. The first receives and processes many types of data at the same time. Lying on top of this is the mind’s inner voice. This is our consciousness, which is aware of and in command of the "lower " levels or parallel parts of the brain.

The existence of consciousness is probably connected to the need for language. The survival of the group is greatly enhanced by communication of experience and the exchange of ideas.

In conclusion, art is often appealing when it succeeds in bombarding the senses with multiple layered messages and meaning. In doing so it exposes to us the nature of consciousness and leads us to contemplate ourselves and how we perceive the world. According to Antonio Domasio, good art and good science are aimed at the same thing: to explain human nature.

References

Dawkins, R. (1987) The Selfish Gene
Humphrey, N. (1987) The Inner Eye.
Rolston, H. (2006)
ten Have, H (2006)
Somerville, M. (2009) The Ethical Imagination
Wilson, E.O. (1997) Consilience.
Zeki, S. (2000) Inner Vision

Nature, Art & Language

© All Copyright, 2007, Ray Genet (Revised 2009)