title: The role of regulation in the origin and synthetic modelling of minimal cognition.
abstract: In this paper we address the question of minimal cognition by investigating the origin of some crucial cognitive properties from the very basic organisation of biological systems. More specifically, we propose a theoretical model of how a system can distinguish between specific features of its interaction with the environment, which is a fundamental requirement for the emergence of minimal forms of cognition. We argue that the appearance of this capacity is grounded in the molecular domain, and originates from basic mechanisms of biological regulation. In doing so, our aim is to provide a theoretical account that can also work as a possible conceptual bridge between Synthetic Biology and Artificial Intelligence. In fact, we argue, Synthetic Biology can contribute to the study of minimal cognition (and therefore to a minimal AI), by providing a privileged approach to the study of these mechanisms by means of artificial systems.
authors: IAS-Research Center for Life, Mind and Society, Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, University of the Basque Country (EHU/UPV), Avenida de Tolosa 70, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; Laboratorio de Neurobiologia y Biologia del Conocer (Biology of Cognition Lab), Facultad de Ciencia, Universidad de Chile, Las Encinas 3370, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile. Electronic address: leonardo.bich@ehu.es.
authors: Leonardo
authors: L
authors: Bich
authors: IAS-Research Center for Life, Mind and Society, Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, University of the Basque Country (EHU/UPV), Avenida de Tolosa 70, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
authors: Alvaro
authors: A
authors: Moreno
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001185:Artificial Intelligence; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D004777:Environment; D006801:Humans; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways / Q000502:physiology; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D058615:Synthetic Biology / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Biological autonomy; Minimal cognition; Normativity; Regulation; Stability; Synthetic Biology