Self-Actualised Meta-Intelligence
Aced ‘Analytical + Critical’ Thinking
Human history, till ‘yesterday’
Throughout human history, science, technology, engineering, and even research have witnessed one secular trend: the increasing mathematisation of their conceptualisation and communication. In the sciences, physics is at one end where laws are almost wholly mathematised while biology, at the other end, remains largely descriptive - though its progression also points toward mathematisation. Even social science research has been increasingly denominated in mathematical analysis, and gaining confidence in the universality of its outcomes.
To be true, mathematics dots the path to progress for Homo sapiens. Fields like technology and engineering are nearly 100% mathematised for describing the input-output relationships. For instance, the earliest ‘constructive tech’ – metallurgy – may have been human’s first brush with the nature of universal law that is now mathematics, while discovering the precise compositional imperatives in metallurgy.
Yet, mathematical knowledge and skills were not a formal educational/developmental requirement for the overwhelming majority of humanity. Mathematical creations – especially technology and engineering, from products to services – were comprehensively non-human, subordinate to humans, and non-generative/non-thinking. And, human commands were mathematically read and acted upon by these creations.
However, with the advent of Artificial General/Generative Intelligence (AGI) we now live in an era where technology is propelling humankind towards mathematically transforming itself, mathematising itself.
Humankind is mathematising!
First and foremost, the mathematisation of humankind is going to be uniquely transformative—unlike anything before. It will be the first change to impact all of humanity, leaving no one untouched, unaffected, or uneducated by the mathematically structured world that will surround us. This aspect alone makes mathematisation one of the most significant transformations in human history. A lot rides for humanity on mathematisation.
In the following posts, I will present specific evidence of how AGI is driving this mathematisation of humankind. One example is how mathematisation is mutatively changing the origin of innovations. Studying products or gaps in the market is being replaced by working with Big Data to discover where to innovate. Mathematics (and analytical thinking) is redefining innovation; democratising it, and making it far cheaper to actualise.
In this context, the birth and growth of AGI—regardless of debates around its organic potential—has already assertively reordered the significance of different strands of thinking. Concisely, AGI is primarily powered by Big-data analysis, algorithm development, and predictive modelling. Moreover, even the design of algorithms and models is becoming more empirical with each passing day, as they are increasingly fine-tuned and trained using real-world data, facts, and instances. The contribution of ‘human thinking and design’ is shrinking. AGI is getting to be organically real and mathematical, at the same time.
The Rise of Analytical Thinking
The rise of AGI, and the way it pivots around mathematics, is making analytical thinking the dominant and most important skill for the era of AGI ahead. By definition, analytical thinking is a logical, step-by-step approach to problem-solving. It works by breaking down complex situations (data points about them) into more discreet and manageable components. It then identifies patterns and applies quantitative models to explain the behaviour of situations while preserving the integrity of the data-denominated situations.
Mathematical proofs require rigorous analytical thinking to establish truths based on definitions and axioms. Mathematics embodies analytical thinking, more than any other domain of knowledge (especially the abstract kind of analytical thinking.) Science, for example, significantly relies on analytical thinking, but it also involves a substantial amount of critical thinking. In this sense, science is less wholly analytical than mathematics.
Critical Thinking: Best Demonstrated in Science
Critical thinking is essential to science because it drives rigorous inquiry and produces universally applicable understandings of nature and its laws. The rigour is also reflected in how we develop technologies that apply scientific laws for the man-made world, engineering. Critical thinking guides the scientific community to continuously evaluate the extant understanding and manage the degree of uncertainty in everything. Science is fundamentally rooted in critical thinking.
For instance, formulating hypotheses—based on existing knowledge and reasoning of observations, experiences, and experiments—requires critical thinking. Designing experiments requires deep personal insights and probabilistic decisions about variables and conditions. Moreover, evaluating evidence goes far beyond experimental data, and determining the validity and reliability of the setup, methods, evidence, and conclusions. Critical thinking also drives innovative thinking, generates multiple perspectives, possible explanations of conclusions, and frames the expression of the conclusions.
Critical Thinking: A Complement to Analytical Thinking
At one plane, critical thinking enhances our appreciation, relevance, and importance of the context of situations focusing on the evaluative and judgemental considerations. In contrast, analytical thinking emphasises the matter of the context itself, concentrating on compositional character. Analytical thinking is more founded on quantitative and objective investigation and formulation, whereas critical thinking incorporates qualitative and subjective reasoning and decision-making aspects too. For instance, considerations such as ethical, social, cultural, and political colour require a critical thought process.
Analytical and Critical Thinking: Humanizing AGI
Mastering both analytical and critical thinking equips us to gainfully and rewardingly harness AGI in our personal as well as professional lives. However, AGI is unlikely to master the limitless dimensions of critical thinking in the foreseeable future. It certainly cannot compete with any learner human, one who is continuously learning and stays a step ahead of AGI capabilities.
Indeed, in the AGI-era, meta-intelligence is the equal mastery of both analytical and critical thinking routines and rigour.
Looking ahead, the future posts would draw upon the two foundational objects in mathematics – numbers (system) and arithmetic operations to enrich analytical, critical, and creative faculties. These two elements are foundational choices in the discovery of the infinite edifices of mathematics and my ongoing narrative spanning over a thousand pages continues to grow with newer discoveries.
A sincere exploration of numbers and operations is a goldmine for (re)kindling analytical, critical, and creative thinking prowess. More relevantly, it is the easiest context to develop the three modes of thinking.
Hopefully, the urgent imperative of an educational renaissance is also sharp and forcefully presented. For, ALL children need to learn ‘cent percent mathematics,’ – a language focused entirely on ‘thinking mathematically,’ analytically, critically, and creatively.