ideasthesia

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Ryan Collison

I write about cool science and share it here.

Graphic visualizing the three-tier autonomic nervous system hierarchy: social engagement, mobilization, and immobilization circuits

The Autonomic Hierarchy: Your Nervous System Has Three Gears

Part 1 of Polyvagal Through the Coherence Lens Your nervous system isn’t a switch. It’s a stack. The standard model tells you there are two modes: fight-or-flight versus rest-and-digest. Sympathetic versus parasympathetic. On versus off. This binary is useful the way training wheels are

Nested hierarchical diagram showing multi-scale Markov blankets from individual to population-level predictive systems

Ten Testable Predictions from the Free Energy Principle

Ten Testable Predictions from the Free Energy Principle Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. From 808s to Therapy Rooms to Viral Memes Ryan Collison Independent Researcher, ideasthesia.

Hydrogen to coherence—one geometric principle across scales

The Hydrogen Anchor Revisited: From Atoms to Coherence in One Geometric Principle

Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. We began with hydrogen. One proton. One electron. The simplest atom. The first structure that ever held together in the universe.

Mathematical realism in consciousness—not metaphor

Why This Isn't Metaphor: The Mathematical Architecture Beneath Meaning

Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. Throughout this series, we’ve described minds using mathematics. Belief states as points on manifolds. Information distance measured by the Fisher

Possibility space geometry—what could happen

Counterfactuals and Possibility Space: The Geometry of "What Could Happen"

Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. The path you’re walking isn’t the only one that exists. There are other paths—paths you didn’t take,

Self as constructor—nervous system performing identity

You Are a Constructor: The Task Your Nervous System Performs

Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. You are not a thing. You are a process. This isn’t poetry. It’s physics. A constructor, in the technical

Constructor theory—what transformations are possible

Constructor Theory: Reframing Everything as "What Transformations Are Possible?"

Formative Note This essay represents early thinking by Ryan Collison that contributed to the development of A Theory of Meaning (AToM). The canonical statement of AToM is defined here. Physics usually asks: given this initial state and these laws, what happens? The question presupposes trajectory thinking. You specify where you