Technological practice: leading the human race to the stars

Chapter 223 Project Swarm
Yuanze remembered that after the stability maintenance faction's "humanoid monster" plan failed, Commander Chen said they had a new plan to deal with other threats from the vast space.

I also found clues about this from the computer I found.

They seem to be trying to erase the individual consciousness of most people so that humanity can be more united and they can maintain their status forever.

Thinking hard!
The ant colony that Weiming belongs to can give birth to a stronger individual consciousness from the collective consciousness. If humans do this, wouldn’t they be reversing the history of natural evolution?

Moreover, their starting point is only to find a way to consolidate their own position and preserve the continuation of the human race.

This is like an ant colony, which follows orders and makes choices that maximize the interests of the race.

They look very similar, but in fact they are completely different.

One side is just for a small number of people, the other side is for the population.

Thinking of this, Yuanze couldn't help but feel a rage that was difficult to extinguish, and even Weiming could feel the rising emotions.

"Zeyuan, what's wrong with you?"

"Oh, nothing. I just thought of something that made me unhappy." Yuanze changed the subject, "By the way, how were your tribes divided into classes in the past?"

Weiming closed his eyes and shook his head:

"We are not divided into classes like humans. Although we are mainly controlled by pheromones, we are divided according to occupations. In essence, there is no high or low except for the queen ant."

"Then it is very close to the rules of the Source Beast City?"

"You could say that. Because ordinary individuals have no decision-making power at all, but they are fully involved in every action."

“Are there some special races of ants that don’t communicate this way?”

When Weiming heard this question, he was stunned at first, then fell into deep thought. This seemed to stump him.

Yuanze also turned his eager gaze away from his face, wondering if his question was a little rash.

"Yes, but I only encountered one. At that time, I was controlled by the queen ant, so I don't remember it clearly."

There had been some minor frictions and small-scale battles between that tribe and the unnamed tribe.

They are very special. Their consciousness is more degraded than that of their own group. They have almost no individual consciousness, but have formed a purer collective consciousness.

All individual ants’ behaviors and decisions are part of the collective, so each ant operates like a cell in a superorganism.

The queen ant may still exist in this structure, but her role may be closer to a key node in the "collective brain" rather than an independent individual.

"Oh, I see. Do you think it's possible to combine your two modes with theirs?"

In Yuanze's vision, each ant has a stronger individual consciousness, but the queen ant's individual consciousness is stronger and can coordinate the flow of consciousness of the entire colony.

Other ants share a broader collective consciousness while retaining a degree of independence.

In this mode, a phenomenon similar to "collective decision-making" may occur, where the entire group makes consistent decisions with collective consciousness at certain critical moments.

"I understand what you mean. You are looking for a stable consciousness structure that does not need to be restrained by a strong person. I think neither humans nor source beasts can do it, but human AI seems to have some hope!"

"Look, people are praising me, I'm so embarrassed to do anything about it." When Astra heard this, he conveyed his thoughts to Yuanze's mind, and his tone sounded very proud.

"Come on, don't bother me."

"What are you bothering me about?" "Uh, nothing, maybe I'm a little dazed." Yuanze paused for a moment, "Why do you think so?"

"It's very simple. All living things have biological nature. The pursuit of the accumulation of resources is an instinct for a sense of security. But AI will not do that. They are more fair and objective than living things."

Weiming's words made Yuanze fall into deep thought.

He realized that the purer collective consciousness model of the population that Weiming had seen, although seemingly able to avoid individual disputes, also deprived individuals of their autonomy and creativity.

“AI does have its advantages.”

Yuanze nodded and said slowly:
"But the question is, if AI has absolute control, will they eventually treat organisms as resources rather than subjects? Will they turn themselves into a new type of life form?"

"However, if AI can build a collective consciousness similar to ours based on logic and procedures, it may become a more effective balance point."

"The model you're describing sounds like we need to find a 'middle ground'."

“Perhaps we can use AI as an aid to coordinate the flow of consciousness between organisms, rather than taking full control.”

Weiming nodded slightly:

“Interesting idea, to have AI act as a mediator of consciousness, rather than a ruler of consciousness. Do you think this is possible?”

"Technically, this is achievable. However, this requires recognition and acceptance by human beings themselves, otherwise no matter how good the technology is, it cannot be implemented."

“That’s the biggest problem.”

Yuanze sighed softly, how to make humans believe in this new mode of consciousness while avoiding going to extremes.

Weiming didn't say anything else; he fell into deeper thought.

"However, we also need to consider the desire of living things for freedom. Other creatures are not as easy to accept collective consciousness as you ants." Yuan Ze added
"That's true," Weiming said, "But perhaps we can slowly let various creatures adapt to this new consciousness structure through guidance rather than force."

"That's it, you and I have been chatting for such a long time, and the content is still so monotonous."

"You're welcome."

The unknown figure gradually disappeared in this space.

Yuanze stood there, looking in the direction where Weiming disappeared, his thoughts still complicated.

He thought back to the special ant colony that Weiming had mentioned, whose collective consciousness completely devoured the individual ants, making each ant function like a cell in a giant organism.

This should be the "Swarm Plan" of the stability maintenance faction!
Yuanze couldn't find a correct answer in his mind, so he asked Astra what he thought of Weiming's idea.

"It's technically feasible, but the key is human acceptance. But you can't forget it either."

"But at least it's much better than the stability maintenance faction's Zerg Plan."

Astra sensed his anger, and his voice sounded in his mind at the right time:

"You know, no matter how perfect the technology is, sometimes the most unstable variable is also the most powerful force."

Yuanze nodded, the anger in his heart was suppressed by reason, but it did not go out. Perhaps as Astra said, the most unstable variable is often the most powerful force.

(End of this chapter)