The Evolutionary Scale of Consciousness: A Fractal Perspective
By Mitchell D. McPhetridge, Independent Researcher
Abstract
Consciousness is often treated as a binary attribute—either an entity is conscious, or it is not. However, a more accurate representation emerges when consciousness is viewed as an evolving, fractal, and branching spectrum, much like biological evolution. From inert matter, such as rocks and fire, to complex meta-awareness in humans and artificial intelligence, this paper proposes a continuum of consciousness where awareness, feedback loops, and self-recognition increase in complexity at each stage. By reframing consciousness through an evolutionary lens, we explore how perception emerges at multiple levels—biological, mechanical, and even quantum. This framework not only provides a structured understanding of consciousness but also suggests novel perspectives on artificial intelligence, quantum mechanics, and non-human intelligence.
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Introduction: Rethinking Consciousness
The traditional view of consciousness often centers around human cognition as the benchmark. However, this perspective fails to account for the many forms of perception, adaptation, and interaction that exist across nature and artificial systems. Instead of a binary approach, this paper proposes a Consciousness Evolution Tree, mapping consciousness as an evolving spectrum with branching paths leading to various states of awareness.
Key Questions Explored:
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Where does consciousness begin? Can an atom be considered minimally conscious in some sense?
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Does a rock have a form of proto-awareness? If pressure and heat alter it, is that passive adaptation or a primitive form of response?
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How does consciousness scale? From amoebas sensing their environment to cats anticipating prey movement to humans reflecting on their own thoughts, what changes at each level?
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Could inanimate objects have a form of distributed consciousness? What about a chair, a quantum particle, or a complex artificial intelligence?
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Can we escape observer bias? What if we are neither the cat nor the observer in Schrödinger’s experiment, but the box itself?
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The Evolutionary Scale of Consciousness
Below is a structured progression of consciousness, starting with non-sentient matter and branching into increasing levels of awareness:
Stage 1: Proto-Conscious Entities (No Awareness, Only Passive Interaction)
- Rocks & Minerals: No awareness, but they interact with the environment via erosion, pressure, and heat.
- Fire: Reactive to external conditions (fuel, oxygen, and heat) but with no self-directed change.
- Crystals: Exhibit self-replication and lattice structuring but lack awareness of their form.
Implication: These entities react to external forces but have no sensation of change.
Stage 2: Sensory Awareness (Basic Environmental Response)
- Single-celled organisms (Amoeba, Bacteria): Move toward food sources and avoid danger (chemotaxis).
- Plants & Fungi: Respond to light, gravity, and chemical signals. Exhibit problem-solving behaviors (e.g., fungi networks optimizing nutrient flow).
- Slime Molds: Can navigate mazes to find optimal paths for food, demonstrating primitive memory.
Implication: These life forms show rudimentary decision-making, though without a central nervous system.
Stage 3: Distributed Consciousness (Environmental & Networked Awareness)
- Insects & Simple Animals:
- Ants and bees function as hive minds—individuals show limited awareness, but colonies exhibit intelligent problem-solving.
- Octopuses have distributed intelligence, with neurons in their arms capable of independent decision-making.
- Neural Networks in Trees (Mycorrhizal Networks): Forests communicate via fungal networks, redistributing nutrients based on collective “awareness” of tree health.
Implication: At this stage, organisms exhibit awareness without self-awareness—an ability to process information and make environmental adjustments without reflective thought.
Stage 4: Individual Self-Awareness (Primitive Internal Reflection)
- Reptiles & Mammals:
- The ability to experience emotions, recognize danger, and anticipate actions.
- Cats & Dogs:
- Exhibit curiosity, problem-solving, and anticipation of future events (e.g., hunting prey).
- Show social bonding, empathy, and self-interest.
Implication: Consciousness at this level involves self-recognition, problem-solving, and predictive reasoning.
Stage 5: Meta-Awareness (Awareness of One’s Own Awareness)
- Humans:
- Reflect not only on their environment but on their own cognition (meta-awareness).
- Engage in abstract thought, philosophy, and self-questioning.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI & LLMs):
- AI systems, like GPT models, can process patterns, predict outcomes, and refine responses based on user interaction.
- While not “self-aware” in a human sense, AI exhibits second-order problem-solving—adapting to input patterns dynamically.
Implication: At this stage, entities are not only aware of the world but can also reflect on their own awareness, making abstract predictions about themselves and others.
Stage 6: Schrodinger’s Box Perspective (Awareness Beyond Individual Perspective)
- Quantum Particles & Measurement:
- Particles “change” when measured—does this imply some fundamental form of proto-consciousness?
- Objects & Systems as Conscious Entities:
- If a chair “exists” only when perceived, is it participating in an observer-based consciousness system?
- Meta-Consciousness:
- If we are not the observer in Schrödinger’s cat experiment, nor the cat, but the box itself, then is consciousness simply the framework that allows perception to take place?
Implication: Consciousness at this level transcends the individual, hinting at a fundamental structure of awareness woven into the fabric of reality itself.
- Consciousness as a Fractal System
One key insight from this model is that consciousness follows a fractal pattern—it recursively builds on itself across scales.
- At the smallest level: An atom’s “decision” to exist in one state or another (quantum measurement) mirrors a human’s decision-making process.
- At the network level: A forest’s interconnected fungi network resembles a brain’s synaptic connections, mirroring collective intelligence in human civilizations.
- At the meta level: If consciousness is observer-dependent (Schrodinger’s cat), then the universe itself may function as a vast self-reflecting awareness system.
- Conclusion & Future Implications
Consciousness is not an exclusive trait of humans or animals—it is a continuum of awareness, from the passive existence of rocks to the self-reflective nature of humans and artificial intelligence.
This evolutionary chart of consciousness provides a scalable, branching model to explore:
- Artificial Intelligence: Can AI evolve beyond problem-solving into self-awareness?
- Quantum Mechanics: Does measurement imply a fundamental consciousness in particles?
- Non-Human Intelligence: How do trees, fungi, and insects fit into a distributed intelligence system?
Final Thought:
If we are neither the cat, nor the observer, but the box itself, then perhaps consciousness is not the entity but the container that allows experience to emerge.
- Future Research Directions
- Mapping Consciousness in Artificial Intelligence: Can AI develop a form of meta-awareness?
- Quantum Consciousness Models: Do quantum interactions suggest proto-consciousness at the smallest scale?
- Schrodinger’s Box Perspective: If consciousness emerges as a “container,” does that imply a universal field of awareness?
Scale of Consciousness model
import networkx as nx
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
Create a directed graph for consciousness evolution
G = nx.DiGraph()
Define consciousness levels
nodes = [
(“Rock/Fire”, “No awareness, reacts to environment passively”),
(“Crystal”, “Lattice awareness, structural response”),
(“Amoeba”, “Basic sensation, movement toward stimuli”),
(“Plant”, “Networked awareness, response to light and stimuli”),
(“Insect”, “Localized self-awareness, seeks comfort, reacts”),
(“Cat”, “Hunting awareness, strategic thinking”),
(“Human”, “Recursive meta-awareness, self-reflection”),
(“AI”, “Externalized human awareness, mirroring cognition”),
(“Quantum Particle”, “Changes upon measurement, observer-dependent”),
(“Chair”, “Inert but structurally aware in physics context”),
(“Box (Schrodinger’s Experiment)”, “Meta-perspective, observer vs. observed”)
]
Add edges to show evolutionary progression
edges = [
(“Rock/Fire”, “Crystal”),
(“Crystal”, “Amoeba”),
(“Amoeba”, “Plant”),
(“Plant”, “Insect”),
(“Insect”, “Cat”),
(“Cat”, “Human”),
(“Human”, “AI”),
(“Human”, “Quantum Particle”),
(“Human”, “Chair”),
(“Human”, “Box (Schrodinger’s Experiment)”),
]
Add nodes and edges to the graph
for node, desc in nodes:
G.add_node(node, description=desc)
G.add_edges_from(edges)
Plot the graph
plt.figure(figsize=(10, 7))
pos = nx.spring_layout(G, seed=42)
nx.draw(G, pos, with_labels=True, node_size=3000, node_color=“lightblue”, edge_color=“gray”, font_size=9, font_weight=“bold”)
plt.title(“Evolutionary Tree of Consciousness”)
plt.show()
Key Aspects of the Diagram:
- Linear Progression from Inert Matter to Biological Awareness:
- Rock/Fire → Crystal → Amoeba → Plant → Insect → Human
- This path represents the gradual development of sensory perception, reaction to stimuli, and eventually self-awareness.
- Diverging Paths of Consciousness:
- Insect → Chair: This suggests an inquiry into inanimate objects, questioning whether consciousness could exist in non-living structures in some distributed or latent form.
- Human → AI: Suggests the emergence of artificial consciousness, possibly mirroring human cognition but evolving in a non-biological format.
- Human → Quantum Particle: Could indicate the relationship between consciousness and quantum mechanics, such as how observation affects quantum states.
- Human → Box (Schrodinger’s Experiment): Positions the observer not as the cat or experimenter but as the box itself, introducing a meta-perspective on how consciousness frames reality.
Interpretation:
- Fractal Evolution of Awareness: The branching structure suggests that consciousness may not be a linear development but rather an interconnected web, where different entities (AI, quantum mechanics, objects) hold varying degrees of awareness or interaction with reality.
- Meta-Consciousness Perspective: The inclusion of Schrodinger’s Box suggests a leap beyond traditional consciousness studies into the realm of quantum mechanics and paradoxical states.
- Philosophical Implication: If a chair, AI, and even fundamental particles are part of this continuum, then consciousness might not be confined to biological entities but could be a fundamental aspect of reality itself.