Anthropology of intelligence

Personal Device: an intelligent sputnik for every human

As the world evolved with an increasing speed of changes, humans began searching for a personal advisor. That is someone or something that could help improve their abilities to keep up with the pace and yet stay full of life.

This global need for both personal advice and pleasure began with a revolution of personal computers in the early 80s. It continued with smartphones and global cloud services. What will be the next key feature of a universal cultural evolution?

Helius’ is designed for thinking people with a primary goal to improve their creative abilities. This is achieved by solving various never-repeated puzzles with an increasing level of complexity. As the player reaches the shelf of self-abilities, he or she may enter a kind of “self-learning creative mode” to make the right meta-decisions and develop further.

It’s time to take the first step in this exciting journey. Welcome to Helius’.

The Global Network - World Wide Web?

The highest point of every organization is a state when all its parts are tightly connected. The global network powered by Internet technology is a predetermined evolutionary outcome of the cultural and technological development of human organizations. It’s a weak point, too.

Just like the variety in Nature is the key factor in preserving life, the variety in Intelligence is the key factor in preserving the stability of human civilization. The reason is that the variety in Intelligence is a source for the variety of decisions.

Who makes decisions on Earth? For the outside observer, perhaps, the answer is different from an anthropocentric vision.

The Helius’ concept follows a “peer-to-all” communicative approach. We protect private data about the abilities of the mind but provide the opportunity to share achievements.

The Computer Age
From calculations to modeling the environment

A computer is an artificial device for modeling processes that occur in the organic computer called the brain. This invention was an inevitable milestone in human social evolution.

Powered by computer-based systems, human culture has great opportunities to centralize itself as a whole and become a kind of a gigantic united organization, despite contradictory intentions of cultural and political formations.

Software evolved from primitive computing mechanisms to complex sets of programs organized hierarchically. They now can model dynamic environments and create artificial worlds.

Helius’ software is designed in such a way that it adopts human intelligence to improve human abilities.

Strange as it might seem, but Helius’ uses two of the very old but powerful programming languages for interaction with a human. These are LISP and BASIC. However, now the algorithms are transformed to the modern programming language Swift and Apple iOS.

From Psyche to Intelligence
The human mind as the Universe

Another aspect of the mechanical revolution was the transition from psyche (or soul) to mind as to a set of dynamic physiological functions or a universal matter. Rene Descartes: “Cogito ergo sum” or, “I think, therefore I am.”

Contrary to mechanics, psychology has never been a universal science and is still shifting between various contradictory hypotheses and theories.

In the 20th century, special tests were made to assess human intelligence. The most popular is still the IQ test. It moved away from the psyche and introduced a complex score as an indicator of brainpower.

The artificial intelligence engine of the Helius’ app can generate all classic types of IQ tests. We only do not offer any verbal tasks due to language and cultural differences.

What makes Helius’ special is that it also has an emotional side along with the intelligent one. These emotions, however, do not come from psychology but rather from neuroscience. See the next part of the story for details.

The Mechanical Age
The mechanization of a logical calculus

In the 13th century, Raymundus Lullius created a logical machine in the form of paper circles. These circles together embraced the whole field of possible knowledge: from divinity to law and medicine. This logical system that received the name Ars Magna (The Great Art) was made to help discover the truth. The system is described in a treatise entitled “Ars magna generalis.”

In the 17th century, Blaise Pascal invented a mechanical calculator. He presented it as a machine that could perform calculations that were previously thought to be only humanly possible.

In the 19th century, Charles Babbage invented a programmable analytical engine. It was a mechanical general-purpose computer.

These inventions, along with the works of Kepler, Newton, Leibniz, and many other scientists and philosophers, gave rise to the mechanical vision of natural processes.

As every computer program, Helius’ uses the mechanical vision of logical processes. However, it takes into account the recursive nature of matter. This is a very attractive idea that is close to the original vision of “Ars magna generalis.”

Ancient Greek Paideia
A perfect way to educate people

The term Paideia (παιδεία) refers to the education system in classical Greek and Greco-Roman cultures. It derives from the Greek pais, paidos: the upbringing of the child (related to pedagogy and pediatrics).

In the early Christian era, it served as a model of higher learning and was aimed at bringing up an ideal member of society. Paideia included both arts and sciences: rhetoric, music, poetry, mathematics, geography, natural history, philosophy, and gymnastics.

The idea of Paideia is superior intelligence and physical abilities.

Later Paideia became the equivalent of the Latin Humanitas (from which “the humanities”), signifying the general learning that should be the possession of all human beings. It evolved through the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and the Modern periods.

The concept of Helius’ is based on the Paideia-oriented idea of the centrality of human knowledge. It embraces the integral holistic vision of the human mind and reactions as well.

We especially stimulate creative thinking and adaptive decisions.

The name Helius’ is rooted in Ancient Greek mythology and has a long history. We will talk about it in future blog posts.

The Minoan civilization
The stunning arts, games, and the harmonious vision of Nature

In his epic poem The Odyssey, Homer described the island of Crete as “out in the wine-dark sea . . . a rich and lovely sea-girt land, densely peopled, with 90 cities and several different languages.” Crete was the birthplace of the mighty Minoan civilization, which is one of the oldest in Europe. It appeared two thousand years before the birth of Homer. The Greeks will later call the Minoan supremacy “thalassocracy” or “the empire of the sea” spread throughout the Mediterranean.

The Minoans had no city walls and built no temples. They did not conquer the world with armies of warriors. But their stunning architecture and amazing arts deeply influenced the Mycenaean civilization – the era of mythical heroes, sung by Homer much later.

We are strongly inspired by how the Minoans felt nature and perceived the world.
The origin of the Helius' world is based on that conscious harmonious vision of Nature.

The beauty of Minoan arts still amazes people. But many other things matter to us as well. For example, games. Acrobatic, competitive, and of course, board games. The most famous game of Knossos is kept at the Heraklion Archaeological Museum on Crete, but there are others.

We believe that the renowned Phaistos disc, which purpose remains disputed, was also a kind of a game. Helius’ intends to include almost all of the Minoan games.

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How 14 ancient animals are connected with modern computers

This classification influenced many scholars, from Michel Foucault to contemporary anthropologists and ethnographers.

It was suggested by Jorge Luis Borges in his essay “The Analytical Language of John Wilkins.” He describes “a certain Chinese Encyclopedia,” the Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge, in which it says that animals are divided into 14 rather peculiar and funny groups.

Borges allegedly makes fun of the attempts to categorize the world. Yet, like other Borgesian jokes, it is serious.

The new article on our website offers a deeper look into this classification. Explore how the 14 fictional animals list lines up with the binary system invented by Gottfried Leibniz.

The article might appear to be surprising. However, on a certain conceptual level, everything in the world is fundamentally binary. It is enough to recall the principle of Yin and Yang: two halves that together complete wholeness.

As stated by many astronomers, even the Sun had an early binary companion. However, some may argue that the Universe cannot be reduced to binary “yes and no” or “black and white.”

Can it be that all modern computers have a lot in common with a fabled Chinese encyclopedia? You are invited to draw your own conclusions.

Helius’ – full of lifeBorges and the Celestial Emporium of Benevolent Knowledge

For decades people have searched for ways to become smarter. Dozens of theories have appeared suggesting what can boost people’s intellect. Although many of them are considered myths, almost every theory has a sense to it. Let’s take a closer look at some.

1. Listening to classical music raises your IQ
Known as the Mozart effect, the study revealed that the students who listened to classical music for 10 minutes increased their spatial intelligence level by 8-9 points. Although the effect lasted for only 10 to 15 minutes, it was enough for the governor of Georgia to present a CD of classical music to the mothers of every newborn in the state. The Mozart effect theory still has many followers all over the world.

2. You can improve intelligence by holding your breath underwater
The method was described in Dr. Win Wenger’s book “The Einstein Factor.” He claims that everyone can learn techniques that open their brain’s capacities for genius. For example, when you hold your breath, the brain receives signals that the supply of oxygen is suspended. The arteries that carry blood to the head begin to actively provide the brain and other major organs with rich, oxygenated blood. As a result, the IQ level gets 10 points higher, along with improved awareness and increased concentration of attention.

3. “Smart” food can make people smarter
Fish oil and blueberries are definitely healthier than a hot dog. But do they make the brain work better? It’s all very simple. The products that are good for the brain are also good for the heart. And when the heart is healthy, it regularly supplies the brain with oxygen, which leads to its maximum performance.

All these theories have one general lack. They see intelligence as dominated by a single general ability and determined as the IQ score. However, intelligence is much more complex. It also includes such things as talents, creativity, and imagination.