The cognitive homunculus: do tunable languages-of-thought convey adaptive advantage?

Abstract

We reexamine the generalized cognitive homunculus, an organism's internalized image of its physiological, psychological, and social state, which, when properly adjusted, can quickly detect subtle deviations from a reference configuration. We particularly seek to extend the treatment beyond 'language-of-thought' systems modeled as ergodic information sources. Such extension would generate an exceedingly rich response repertoire, not limited by fixed patterns of grammar and syntax. Rather, these would themselves be tunable according to the changing short-term contextual demands faced by the organism, possibly providing significant long-term adaptive advantage.