Short articles on unsolved problems: an introduction to humanology

Abstract

The human is as distinct a domain as is life and matter. This distinction is due to an exclusive memory system. Two primary memory systems preceded the symbolic memory system of the human, the genetic and the perceptual. The symbolic system came into being as the protohuman ape group was transformed by the utilization of vocalization as a mechanism of social control. The high survival value of speech, coupled with the anatomical changes due to arboreal living, led to a new form of existence, the human. A byproduct of speech was the utilization of the symbolic memory as a means to conceptualize experience. A dominant concept, that of ‘self’, came into being and the human entered a new phase of existence with the acquisition of language. Technological improvements led to various domestications and a sufficient food supply to support a substantially enlarged population and the necessity of specialization. Humanity now was embarked upon a pathway of cultural evolution. So far, it has passed through four stages and is involved in a fifth. These stages are those of: (1) ‘consciousness’—animism; (2) ‘self-consciousness’—magic; (3) normative or ethical—the ‘other’; (4) rational consciousness; and, (5) ‘critical’ or scientific consciousness. The latter, so far, represents a partial integration of perceptual and symbolic experience as reflected in the self-conscious utilization of technical knowledge in the fields of physical energy and the life sciences. The three basic memory systems are embedded in brain functions where the brain bears the same relation to mind as does the atom to energy and the cell to life. The interpretation of cultural evolution in terms of these memory systems constitutes the science of ‘humanology.’