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The blind men and the elephant: What is missing cognitively in the study of cumulative technological evolution

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 August 2020

Bernard J. Crespi Open the ORCID record for Bernard J. Crespi [Opens in a new window]
Bernard J. Crespi*
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British ColumbiaV5A 1S6, Canada.crespi@sfu.cahttps://www.sfu.ca/biology/faculty/crespi/
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Abstract

I describe and explain (1) evidence regarding a key role for autism spectrum cognition in human technology; (2) tradeoffs of autistic cognition with social skills; and (3) a model of how cumulative technological culture evolves. This model involves positive feedback whereby increased technical complexity selects for enhanced social learning of mechanistic concepts and skills, leading to further advances in technology.

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Open Peer Commentary
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Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 43 , 2020 , e161
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Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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