The Power of External Cognition

From Tribal Wisdom to Modern Science: The Art of Leveraging External Minds

Image Source: ChatGPT/Dall-E

“Extended Mind” by Annie Murphy Paul describes the fascinating ways we can use our body, our environment, and other people to extend our cognitive functions.

The book is organized into 3 parts each describing a type of extended mind cognition and the type of extensions that affect our memory, thinking, and creative abilities:

• Embodied cognition studies the impact of our body — sensations, movements, and gestures
• Situated cognition explores our environment, including natural and built spaces
• Distributed cognition examines the impact of social interactions — experts, peers, and groups.

I’ll share a few concepts here, but I highly recommend reading the whole book which is full of great anecdotes and interesting scientific research.

I was fascinated to discover that several pieces of tribal knowledge and ancient wisdom, which seem intuitively accurate, have actually been validated by modern scientific research.

• Being outdoors in nature and going for a walk — relieves stress, increases attention and enables better focus
• Mindfulness meditation is a way of enhancing body awareness. Tapping into your body’s internal knowledge and intuition (gut instinct) can be a profound way to extend your mind — “reconnecting the conscious mind to the feeling states of the body.”
• Hand gestures — enhance speech fluency and our understanding of abstract concepts. Gesturing offloads our cognitive burden similar to writing things down on paper.
• Environmental cues — impact our sense of belonging and control and improve our performance. Having our own permanent work space rather than a hoteling cube for example.
• Electronic “breaks” zap focus and attention — unlike nature walks they are the opposite of a restorative break.
• Having meal together with colleagues — drives higher performance in group thinking and teams (than ones who do not).
• Apprenticeship for knowledge work — where an expert can explain their thinking process our loud and then provide structure and support for the learner to increasingly take on the task themselves.
• Imitation — as a key way to learn from others. I found this one fascinating. That historically imitation used to be revered as an art form of its own but over time it came to viewed as lazy or cheating. However we often learn very well by emulating masters and attempting to achieve their level of excellence and craftsmanship.
• Learning by teaching — this is well known but well reinforced in the book that we often learn more by teaching others — where we end up becoming more fluent and more explicit in our understanding, addressing our own gaps in knowledge as we go.
• Membership in a group as motivation — by having a true send of belonging and purpose (identify) — it can provide incredible motivation and drive — more than extrinsic rewards like money and recognition.

The below is a more detailed summary, highlight of the key principles and a chapter by chapter reviews. This section includes my notes and highlights from the book with the help of some ChatGPT formatting.

Summary

The main idea of the book is that human intelligence and thinking can be greatly enhanced by utilizing resources outside of the brain itself. This is called the “extended mind” theory.

Some key ways the author suggests extending the mind:

• Tapping into internal bodily sensations (interoception) to make better decisions
• Using physical movement and gesture to improve learning, memory, and abstract thinking
• Spending time in nature to restore mental equilibrium and boost creativity
• Designing physical spaces and architecture to support focus and collaboration
• Embodying and spatializing abstract ideas to align with the brain’s strengths
• Creating cognitive loops that cycle thoughts between brain, body and world
• Offloading information onto external artifacts like notes, diagrams, lists
• Learning from experts through observation, imitation and teaching others
• Thinking in groups leverages shared knowledge, motivation and attention
• Socializing thinking through argument, storytelling, synchronized rituals

Overall, the book argues we should make deliberate use of resources outside the head — body, space, tools, other people — to overcome the limits of the solo brain. This allows us to think in ways our brains could not manage alone. The key is learning to skillfully engage these “extra-neural” resources and weave them into our thinking.

Principles

• Learning Together: People who need to think together should learn together, in person and at the same time. This approach fosters a sense of unity and shared understanding​​.
• Training Together: Similar to learning, training together in person is crucial for engendering a sense of ‘groupiness’ and collective thinking​​.
• Feeling Together: Encouraging people who need to think together to also feel together, sharing emotions and experiences in person, enhances group cohesion​​.
• Engaging in Rituals Together: Participating in group rituals is the final step to elicit ‘groupiness’. This could involve synchronized activities or shared experiences that reinforce group identity and unity​​.
• Transforming Information into Artifacts: Information should be made tangible and interactive. This involves transforming data into physical forms (artifacts) that can be labeled, mapped, felt, tweaked, and shared with others​​.
• Altering Our State for Mental Labor: When engaging in mental tasks, it’s beneficial to productively alter our physical or mental state. This might involve changing our environment, engaging in physical activity, or adopting different mental strategies to optimize our cognitive performance​​.
• Re-Embodying Information: Information should be reconnected with physical experience. This principle challenges the notion of separating cerebral activities from our physical nature, suggesting that engaging the body can enhance cognitive processes​​.
• Re-Spatializing Information: Leveraging the human brain’s natural spatial orientation by organizing information in spatial formats, like memory palaces, can enhance cognitive processing and recall​​.
• Re-Socializing Information: Information is processed differently and often more effectively when it involves social interactions, like imitation, debate, teaching, or cooperation. Socializing information leverages our inherent social nature for better thinking​​.
• Generating Cognitive Loops: Managing thinking through cognitive loops involves rotating between internal and external modes of cognition, encouraging a dynamic and iterative process of thought​​.
• Embedding Extensions in Environments: This principle suggests incorporating elements into our environments that extend and support our cognitive processes, such as cues of belonging, transactive memory systems, and nature-infused spaces​​.

Chapter by Chapter

Chapter 1 — Thinking with Sensations:

• Example: Financial traders who are more attuned to their physical sensations often make better trading decisions.
• Tip 1: Practice mindfulness or meditation to enhance awareness of internal sensations, potentially improving decision-making.
• Tip 2: Pay attention to gut feelings or physical discomfort as these might inform intuitive judgments, especially in complex situations.

Chapter 2 — Thinking with Movement:

• Example: Walking or engaging in physical activity can boost creative thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Tip 1: Incorporate walking or light physical activity into brainstorming sessions to enhance creativity.
• Tip 2: Use physical movement as a tool to overcome mental blocks or when faced with challenging cognitive tasks.

Chapter 3 — Thinking with Gesture:

• Example: Gestures can aid in learning and memory, such as when people gesture while explaining a concept.
• Tip 1: Employ gestures during presentations or learning activities to enhance understanding and retention.
• Tip 2: Encourage the use of hand movements and gestures in educational settings to facilitate learning and recall.

Chapter 4 — Thinking with Natural Spaces:

• Example: Spending time in natural environments can significantly improve memory and attention.
• Tip 1: Regularly spend time in natural settings to refresh your mind and enhance cognitive abilities.
• Tip 2: Use natural elements in your workspace, like plants or nature sounds, to maintain a connection with the natural world.

Chapter 5 — Thinking with Built Spaces:

• Example: Architecturally stimulating environments can boost creativity and problem-solving skills.
• Tip 1: Design your workspace with elements that inspire creativity, such as open spaces or stimulating colors.
• Tip 2: Change your physical workspace periodically to introduce new perspectives and ideas.

Chapter 6 — Thinking with the Space of Ideas:

• Example: Mind mapping or visually organizing ideas can lead to more effective problem-solving.
• Tip 1: Use visual tools like diagrams or mind maps to organize and process complex information.
• Tip 2: Create a physical or digital space dedicated to exploring and connecting ideas, which can stimulate innovative thinking.

Chapter 7 — Thinking with Experts:

• Example: Individuals can enhance their decision-making and problem-solving abilities by consulting and collaborating with experts in relevant fields.
• Tip 1: Seek out expert opinions and knowledge to broaden your perspective and enhance understanding in complex areas.
• Tip 2: Engage in mentoring relationships where you can learn from the expertise and experience of others.

Chapter 8 — Thinking with Peers:

• Example: Peer collaboration can lead to more innovative and diverse solutions to problems than working alone.
• Tip 1: Collaborate with peers from diverse backgrounds to gain different perspectives on a problem.
• Tip 2: Participate in group brainstorming sessions to generate a wider range of ideas and solutions.

Chapter 9 — Thinking with Groups:

• Example: Group discussions and teamwork can lead to enhanced problem-solving abilities and more effective decision-making.
• Tip 1: Encourage open and inclusive group discussions to leverage the collective intelligence of the group.
• Tip 2: Utilize group-based activities to combine individual strengths and compensate for weaknesses.

High-Level Tips

• Embrace Nature: Beyond just spending time in nature, actively engage with natural environments through activities like gardening or hiking, to deepen the connection with nature and boost mental well-being.
• Leverage Technology Wisely: Use technology to augment memory and organization. For instance, utilizing digital tools for scheduling and reminders can free up cognitive resources for more complex tasks.
• Foster Social Connections: Engage regularly in deep, meaningful conversations with a diverse range of people. This can provide new perspectives and stimulate cognitive processes.