On 27.12.2012, at 10:04, Brett Ward <[email protected]> wrote:
> I wonder if the environment could be manipulated to favor survival of > organisms that could add and subtract ;) ? > In my quest to decode the primordial IQ cheat sheet, the biases that, among other things, make us mammals and human, I concluded that both hunting in groups and safety in groups provide tremendous incentives to work with small numbers. In wolves this could be implemented through anxiety signals, ie a wolf is not happy until she counts three or four around. In a tool-using animal I can see small multiplications arising, for example three different tools each for the 4 family members. ( the question I am trying to answer is how much arithmetic should be build in, and how much discovered, of course there are more anthropological ways to go about it, but I doubt any would be more valid given our lack of good definitions, among other things). AT ------------------------------------------- AGI Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/303/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/303/21088071-f452e424 Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=21088071&id_secret=21088071-58d57657 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
