A Theory of Computational Evolution

Published in 2013. 

This book presents a physicalist theory of evolution viewed through the lens of computation. The author argues that biological life is not just like a computer but is a computer by definition, specifically distinguishing between biological hardware, termed "sewch," and engineered hardware, termed "terch". The text defines a computer as a special machine that transforms symbols rather than just physical objects, a process that requires the presence of a mind to assign meaning. The author outlines a hierarchy of computational evolution starting from pre-intelligence (the tendency to endure) and moving through stages of proto-intelligence (homeostasis), intelligence (robust memory systems), pre-sentience (predictive modeling), and sentience. A significant portion of the book explains how sentience, control, and free will emerge mechanically from robustly recursive predictive modeling. The theory concludes by projecting the future of computation into meta-sentience (rationality) and super-sentience (self-programming), suggesting that sentient engineered beings are an inevitable next step in evolutionary history.