Institute of Medical Cybernetics, Inc. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: ABSTRACT: Autonomous sense making (understanding) distinguishes human cognition from that

Description

ABSTRACT: Autonomous sense making (understanding) distinguishes human cognition from that of the other species and underlies the dual capability of a) learning efficiently from the past experiences and b) coping efficiently with novel situations having no precedents in the past. Artificial Intelligence and cognitivist psychology have been downplaying the role of understanding reducing it to possession of knowledge and algorithms for applying knowledge. This reduction is due to limitations inherent in the information-theoretic/computational metaphor of cognition. A novel theoretical synthesis has been emerging grounding cognition in biophysical mechanisms responsible for self-organization and self-regulation in the brain. Evolution of these mechanisms culminated in the human brain where they acquired the form enabling construction and manipulation of mental models. Mental modeling is not algorithmic but serves to generate efficient action plans (algorithms) under unfamiliar conditions. Successful modeling is experienced as making sense of the new situation. This proposer pioneered and made some of the early contributions into the new synthesis. The proposed effort expands the theory and applies the results to inform the design of autonomous sense making systems. BENEFIT: Creating artifacts capable of autonomous sense making will bring about technological explosion comparable in scope with that produced by the computer revolution in the last century. In the military arena, the technology can create battlefield superiority comparable to that of possessing nuclear weapons vis--vis conventionally armed opponents.