Ecology of Mind

The metaphor Ecology of Mind has been coined by Gregory Bateson, for instance in his book "Steps to an ecology of mind". In the Society of Mind approach, we try to understand the mind as a society, as a social group of interacting agents. In the ecology of mind approach, we try to understand the mind as an ecology, as a network of interactions.

Bateson's idea of an "Ecology of Mind" and Minsky's idea of a "Society of Mind" have something in common. Both are similar because they try to describe a whole system of interacting entities - species for ecology and agents for society. Both are very interesting, because they maybe help to connect psychology with neuroscience. A useful theory of this kind has much in common with ecology or sociology: it must describe complex adaptive systems which consist of many elements - systems that are able to adjust and adapt themselves.

	Ecology of Mind	Society of Mind	Biology
System Individual Collective Total Flow Interaction	Ecosystem Species Populations Ecological Community Energy flow Food web	Cognitive System Agents Agent population Mind Information Flow Associations	Biological System Neurons Neural Assemblies Brain Information Flow Associations

Ecology is the study of the ecosystem and the environment as it relates to living organisms. It is the study of interactions between organisms and their environment and tries to describe how living systems are connected. A large variety of species and a huge network of interactions - a food web - is characteristic for Ecology. Gregory Bateson thinks the nature of the mind can be understood as a network of connections and interactions relating the individual with his society and his species and with the universe at large.

Books

• Gregory Bateson, Steps to an Ecology of Mind, University Of Chicago Press, 1972