Of Knowledge and Memory

Knowledge and memory aren't the same thing. They are, however, built at the same time.

Dr. Marvin Minsky has a theory of memory called Knowledge Lines, or K-Lines. Dr. Minsky believes that our minds (not our brains) are constructed of multitudes of mental agents, each with a particular function. The function can be very simple, or it can be very complex, involving relationships with many other agents. In any given situation, some number of these agents work together and separately to create an idea or solve a problem. If the same, or similar, problem comes along again, we want the same agents to try to solve the problem in the same way. In order to accomplish that, the agents are wired together by K-Lines. The structure of the agents and their connecting K-Lines represents knowledge. Mental agents can be connected to many K-Lines. The simpler the task of the agent, the more K-Lines it is likely to be connected to. When a K-Line is "activated" for a problem that is similar, but not identical to the original situation, new K-Lines can be created or new agents can be connected to the existing K-Line. K-Lines can be connected to other K-Lines to form especially complex sorts of knowledge.

Memory isn't a passive collection of events. Memory isn't stored in our minds like books on a shelf. Our memories are based on our reactions to events and the knowledge we gain from them. Even when we are passive observers of events, our minds are forming ideas about what we witness and trying to solve what we do and don't understand about it. Later, when we try to solve the same problem or a similar problem, the K-Lines are activated and they put the mental agents in a particular state. It is the state of the agents that forms the memory. Our mind recreates the situation that resulted in the association of the agents. It is literally restoring our state of mind at the time of the situation. Memory is built by the agency that creates the K-Lines.

K-Lines and agents are built and activated by our sensory inputs and by other K-Lines and agents. We are born with a fundamental set of mental agents, and from the instant we gain consciousness, we start building more agents and K-Lines. For the first years of our lives, the mental agencies with their K-Lines are built at a furious rate. By trial and error, we process our sensory inputs, building knowledge and memory, and driving our coordination with the world around us. A baby has to work out how to pick up the toy by trial and error. She has to process the colors, shape, and weight of the toy to associate it with the desire to grasp it. She has to discover which parts of the toy are suitable for grasping it. She has to coordinate all of the muscles and tendons and bones in her hand to lift it. The best she can do at first is to simply touch the toy. As her efforts proceed, she will drop the toy and try again. In our view, she is clumsy and inept, but there is an amazing amount of work going on in her mind, just in the effort of reaching out and picking up the toy. Once she masters the task, she will do it over and over again, strengthening the newly built K-Lines and building new ones for the minute variations in the experience of picking up the toy.

If the K-Lines are there, and the agents are there, waiting to be activated, why don't we remember everything that happens to us during our entire lives? The answer is that the vast majority of our experiences, from instant to instant, are somewhat unique. Every instant of our existence is taken up with activating and deactivating mental states. Over time, certain K-Lines fall into disuse because the identical or near identical situation that created them doesn't occur. As they fall farther into disuse, their connections to agents become weaker and weaker. Sometimes two agents have similar functions. When there is conflict, the agent with the stronger connection to the K-Line will be activated. As any situation recedes over time, the exact state of the mental agents that form the memory of the situation becomes harder and harder to recreate. Sometimes, a situation that activates a similar set of K-Lines and agents will reactivate certain K-Lines that have been dormant in an effort to solve a problem or in the formation of an idea, and the long disused state will be reactivated. We've all said, "That reminds me of..." It is reasonable to assume that all of the K-Lines we have built and every agent we have created are still in our minds. it just takes a situation or event that is close enough to reactivate any state. We don't remember being in the womb because there is never another situation even close to it that occurs in our everyday lives, but in theory, we could, because the agents and K-Lines are still there.

Pleasant memories everyone!