[MUD-Dev] Re: Idea: Hive-mind monster

[coder at ibm.net]

On 30/10/97 at 03:08 PM, Sauron <dlove at kusd.kusd.edu> said:

>> Depending on what you are using to write this...
>> 
>> A non-realtime hive mind: information is exchanged and linkage occurs when
>> two members of the hive meet. The hive has a central information net that
>> can be accessed by any member, any member has full knowledge of the hive
>> to the time of last central unit contact.
>
>as has been said b4 on the newsgroup, the problem w/ this implementation
>is that you have a bunch of individuals w/ the same knowledge, not the
>same "mind". in other words you don't have a single entity (which is what
>i'm trying to do) you have a bunch of little entities all knowing the
>same thing. that doesn't mean they all act the same. 

That's not entirely necessary or true.  There need not be a hard and fast
line between the concept of an individual and the concept of a group.  

Taking the above knowledge model, you can then overlay this with a shared
evolving mind which guides the individuals.  This mind would then also be
transferred and updated as above, as part of the knowledge store.  As
such, individuals are no longer really individuals, but time delayed
versions of an evolving conciousness.  Part of the protocol of individual
meetings would then be resolving any conflicts and re-evaluations of the
central mind generated by the different life-paths and histories of the
individuals meeting.

One of the results of this is that there really is no longer a concept of
a central information net, instead there is a gestaltic web whuch warps
and mutates as new data and mind changes/evolutions act essentially
analagous to viral infections which (attempt to) sweep across the hive
much like waves of competing chain reactions.

A really interesting result of this, especially as the population grows,
is that two individuals from "opposite" ends of the population may have
minds which have evolved tinto such different forms that they __cannot__
resolve their differences, and in effect the two individuals are now of
different species/hives.  For them to resolve their differences would
require a chain of "translators", each incrementally different from the
next, stepping in this manner between the states of the two individuals. 
The translators would then sit chained between the two, shuttling changes
back and forth until there was resolution.  The result of course would be
a group of analagous individuals who re then alien to their greater
populations...

You can then of course postualte messenger individuals whose sole purpose
is to act as virus carriers to attempt to keep the mind in broad
concensus.

A couple SF authors have touched on this sort of model indirectly.  The
most obvious parrallel being the case of man slowly spreading out across
the galaxy, never finding another intelligent race.  Finally, one ship at
the far reaches of one border finds an alien race which is utterly
different to their own.  Further research however reveals that the aliens
are actually just humans who, advancing in the opposite direction
across/about/around the galaxy, have now evolved into something
unrecognisable to those who went the other way.

--
J C Lawrence                               Internet: claw at null.net
----------(*)                              Internet: coder at ibm.net
...Honourary Member of Clan McFud -- Teamer's Avenging Monolith...