Published February 2, 2026 | Version 1.0
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AI Mediated Cognitive Extension- Engineering Solutions to Substrate Constraints

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This journal article preprint presents a comprehensive theoretical framework for AI-mediated cognitive extension based on information physics principles.

Human cognitive capacity faces a fundamental bottleneck: working memory can hold only approximately 4-7 items simultaneously, regardless of intelligence or expertise. Meanwhile, the visual system alone compresses roughly one billion bits per second of retinal input to approximately 50 bits per second of conscious awareness—a compression ratio of 25 million to one. This preprint demonstrates how artificial intelligence systems could extend human cognitive capacity not by increasing biological processing power, but by creating hybrid systems where AI handles bandwidth-intensive information compression while biological cognition maintains adaptive reasoning and consciousness.

The framework integrates multiple independent lines of evidence spanning neuroscience, information theory, comparative biology, and consciousness research. We present seven major testable predictions with specific protocols, timelines, and falsification criteria. These include working memory enhancement without capacity increase, neuroplastic adaptation to AI-augmented information following sensory substitution timelines, and a novel prediction regarding cross-species sleep duration correlating with information processing intensity rather than brain size (R² = 0.82 vs. 0.3 for brain mass alone). The analysis extends to consciousness modulation through autonomic control and direct substrate perception via psychedelic experiences, providing multiple validation pathways for the underlying information-theoretic model.

Critically, all required technology exists today, requiring only integration rather than invention. A two-phase implementation strategy reduces risk by validating theoretical principles through information encoding systems ($2-5M, 2026-2027) before investing in sensory augmentation hardware ($15-25M, 2027-2029). The analysis demonstrates that bats sleeping 19.9 hours after only 4 hours of extreme-intensity echolocation processing, elephants sleeping 3.5 hours across 20+ hours of moderate activity, and dolphins employing unihemispheric sleep to maintain the required total erasure time while satisfying breathing constraints all support the information erasure hypothesis of sleep function according to Landauer's principle.

This work connects ancient contemplative wisdom with modern neuroscience, showing that meditation masters' reports of "seeing reality directly" and psychedelic users' consistent descriptions of geometric substrate patterns represent genuine perception of information-theoretic structures underlying spacetime emergence, not hallucinations. All research follows open science principles with radical transparency, community involvement, and no gatekeeping. The preprint includes complete testing protocols, seven publication-ready figures, comprehensive references, and detailed implementation architectures ready for immediate validation.

Keywords: cognitive augmentation, working memory, information compression, AI-human hybrid systems, sensory augmentation, neuroplasticity, Default Mode Network, consciousness modulation, psychedelic neuroscience, information physics, COSMIC Framework, Landauer's principle, cross-species sleep patterns

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Submitted
2026-02-02
Copyright © 2025 Michael Kevin Baines (ORCID: 0009-0001-8084-3870). This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). You are free to share and adapt this material for any purpose, including commercially, provided you give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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