This perspective on abstract thinking presents it as a fundamental tool for comprehension, problem-solving, and adaptation in an ever-changing environment. By integrating Charles S. Peirce’s concept of abductive reasoning and the unicist logic developed by Peter Belohlavek, which emulates the intelligence of nature, abstract thinking becomes a structured and practical approach to understanding the world around us. It allows for accessing the unicist functionalist principles that underlie actions.

Data-based AI, or more specifically, most current machine learning models, including deep learning models, do not have an inherent capacity for abstraction in the same way that humans do. The AI algorithms rely on massive amounts of data, extracting patterns and making predictions based on the specific input they’ve been trained on.

The abstract definitions of concepts in a data-based AI model depend largely on the human creators of the model. The AI is limited to understanding the concept as it has been defined by the data it has been trained on, which is provided and labeled by humans. Thus, the AI’s capacity for abstraction is bounded by the human’s abstraction capacity that created the training set.

Abstract thinking refers to the cognitive process of understanding concepts that are not grounded in sensory experience or immediate reality. It involves conceptual reasoning, problem-solving, and understanding relationships among abstract ideas, often beyond the constraints of time, space, and physicality.

When applied to abstract thinking, abductive reasoning might look like observing a problem or phenomenon, generating a hypothesis about its underlying mechanisms, testing this hypothesis, and refining our understanding of the phenomenon based on the results.

Unicist logic, on the other hand, is a methodological approach developed by Peter Belohlavek, based on the study of the ontogenetic intelligence of nature. Unicist thinking allows us to comprehend the unified field of complex adaptive systems in order to manage future scenarios and dynamics. It enhances abstract thinking by allowing us to better understand the inherent patterns and principles underlying different systems and phenomena.

Thus, when we weave together Peirce’s concept of abductive reasoning and the unicist logic, abstract thinking can become a powerful tool for grasping the principles that underlie actions and events in the world. It goes beyond the surface level, offering a deeper, comprehensive understanding of the relationships between elements in a system, the mechanisms driving changes, and the dynamics that shape the evolution of complex scenarios. This way, abstract thinking empowers us to better navigate, adapt, and thrive in our changing environment.

The Unicist Research Institute