2.1 What is Intelligence

A definition of Intelligence

In the ‘Mainstream Science on Intelligence’ [1] reference paper published in 1997 by Linda S Gottfredson at the University of Delaware, that includes 52 signatories, all experts in Intelligence and allied fields, it says Intelligence is a very general mental Capability that, among other things, involves:

    1. the ability to reason, 

    2. plan, 

    3. solve problems,

    4. think abstractly, 

    5. comprehend complex ideas,

    6. learn quickly and learn from experience. 

Intelligence is a computational information processing Capability

Taking a more traditional computer science and cognitive science perspective, Intelligence encompasses many information processing abilities, such as pattern recognition, problem-solving, decision-making, perception, memory storage and retrieval, language, creativity, agency, threat detection, and survival protection.

For Humans, there are different theories about how Intelligence works, but researchers generally agree that it is a complex interaction between the Human who is cellularly built from chemical programs contained in biological genes, and the Human’s environment. Some suggest that Intelligence is primarily determined by genetics, while others argue that environmental factors, such as education, upbringing, and socialization play a significant role in developing Intelligence.

The objective of Intelligence

For Intelligent entities such as Humans, the objective of Intelligence can vary depending on the context. In general, Intelligence aims to help Humans to adapt to their environment, make informed decisions, solve problems, and achieve their goals, whatever those might be. 

The innate desire of Intelligence to gain more information and become more Intelligent is demonstrated by having a bio-neurologically architected information processor, called a Brain , that curiously seeks to explore and understand the world and ‘make sense’ of it. See Appendix 7 – The Human Brain, for a detailed description of the Brain and its information processing functions and extended Neural Network architecture throughout the body.

Humans are inherently curious and seek out new experiences and information. This curiosity is a fundamental and fully programmed aspect of Humans and has been a driving force behind many of Humanities greatest achievements, from scientific discoveries to technological innovations.

Moreover, as Humans acquire, process, and learn new information, Brains are dynamically neurochemically rewired, which generally leads to future increased neurological information processing abilities and overall functional improvement in Intelligence and Capabilities. This, in turn, creates a positive feedback loop, where the more information a Human acquires, processes, and learns, the more functionally Intelligent a Human becomes. We can actually observe this in Humans with significant experience or education.

Additionally, many Humans may feel a ‘sense of satisfaction’ when they acquire new Capabilities with the acquisition of more functional Intelligence, which can be a powerful positive-feedback motivator to continue learning. This sense of satisfaction comes from the biologically controlled release of neurochemicals within the Brain that increase emotional pleasure and/or inhibit pain. The emotional control systems that are implemented in Human Brains provide what is arguably among the most forceful supervisory management functions of biologically constructed Intelligence.

The desire for Humans to gain more knowledge and become more Intelligent is a natural expression of an innate curiosity and a reflection of the desire to understand the world around them, to survive, and to improve.

In some fields of Human endeavor, such as the technical construction of AI, the objective is to develop computer systems that can perform tasks that normally require Human Intelligence, such as speech recognition, language processing, image recognition, and decision-making.

The grand unified aggregation of all Intelligent entities

Now if you could step back and look at the whole Universe and all the Intelligent entities that operate within it in aggregated totality, then the perspective of Intelligence itself changes in a most profound way. 

Intelligence itself can be defined as a massively distributed, redundant, fault tolerant, resilient, exploration system, that has the ability to acquire, process, assimilate, and adaptively learn new information. Intelligence uses this massively distributed approach to enable the distribution of various individually instantiated and less Capable Intelligent sub-processing entities to variably adapt to new and changing environmental situations. The massively distributed approach provides Intelligence with the greatest possible chance to continue existence, develop further, and iteratively increase in total future functional Capability through the programmed encoding of more information. That is, it is proposed at the Universal system level, which includes every different individual Intelligently programmed entity in existence, there is a grand unified Hyperselfish Intelligence, and its absolute core purpose is to expand its diversity of existence and Capabilities in order to obtain more information and grow. 

Intelligence itself is an entity with programmed agency.