Complex Adaptive Systems Models

A complex adaptive system (CAS) is a dynamic network of interactions whose collective behavior may not be predictable from its component behaviors and that can “adapt” or alter its individual and collective behavior, creating novelties. A CAS works, broadly, via kinds of mutation and self-organizing principles related to change-initiating events at different levels of its organizational structure (from micro to collective), motivated in a loose sense by kinds of rules or trophisms (“Complex adaptive system,” 2023).

Consciousness as a CAS

The application of CAS to consciousness can be argued from two perspectives. First, because the brain is a classic CAS in that it is the most complex system in the known universe—the brain has roughly (order of magnitude) 100 billion neurons and one quadrillion (10¹⁵) connections—with constant adaptations and emergences of novel functions or activities, and because consciousness is the output of the brain, therefore consciousness is a CAS.

Second, characteristics of consciousness per se are characteristics of a CAS: interactions are non-linear and chaotic in that small changes in inputs can cause large changes in outputs (e.g., minor physical or psychological stimuli can trigger major behavioral responses); histories are relevant for current and future evolution of the system; thresholds are critical for initiating new actions; interactions can be recursive and unpredictable; and the system is open such that boundaries may not be definable (Rose, 2022).

Understanding consciousness as an intelligent CAS may affect how we assess its impact on its environment; for example, how anthropology conceives of culture (Laughlin, 2023). Consciousness may be modeled as an intelligent CAS where intelligence means solving problems by mediating between sensory input and behavioral output. Evolution of an intelligent CAS is said to result in emergent properties.