19 December 2005

A tree of life on the Tree of Life

we have flattened each nervous system
on the Tree of Life
down to a network of points and lines
enclosed within the brain-sized circular
cross-section
of its branch

and we've observed relationships between neurons
in that network
mirroring the relations between
entities in the world

this mirroring growing
more and more precise
as each brain climbs its branch

abstracting symbolic 'shapes'
to represent those relationships
shapes that simplify the paths
of those patterns of matter
embedded in 4-d spacetime

and further using those 4d shapes as metaphors
when a pattern is missing an 'external' shape

testing, then
alternate abstract-shape models
until one stands out
as the best match

and seeking to extend that match
to other entities/ relationships
so that the fewest possible alternate models
match the most possible modeled relationships

(a reduction sought both
by the baby tasting everything it can pick up
and the string theorist trying to unify
gravity with electromagnetism)

ultimately aiming for a single unified 4d model
that can be precisely matched
to every sort of relationship




(like a tree of life model)