Page 82 - The Final Appeal to Mankind

«The Final Appeal to Mankind» by Nicolai Levashov

a) Such a system could develop if the nervous systems of many different organisms
join into one single system. The simpler the nervous system of a single member of the

species, the greater the number of members that must be united in a single system in
order to manifest intelligence.

b) In certain species, the presence of a critical number of neurons in individuals of that
species permits the emergence and evolution of intelligence.

For example, biologists conducted a series of experiments on termites. The termites
were released into a defined area, and it was observed that their population gradually
increased.

Before their population reached a critical number, their behavior was chaotic and
senseless. After the population exceeded a certain critical number, the behavior of the
termites changed dramatically: their actions now became harmonious and intelligent.
Some of the termites began building a mound, and interestingly, they did so
simultaneously, from all sides. The construction process was so precise that all the
inner tunnels of the mound dovetailed into one another with the amazing accuracy of a

fraction of a millimeter. Other termites delivered the materials necessary for
construction. Another group supplied the colony with food. Soldiers also appeared, etc.
A well organized and adjusted life became evident.

Similar colonies have also been observed in ants and bees. It is interesting that these
insects do not live outside their colonies. In their dwellings they maintain a certain
optimal microclimate and microflora. The colony regulates its size and assigns the

number of individuals required to perform certain tasks, according to its needs. For
instance, if a beehive has too many drones, the excess number is destroyed. The sentinel
bees admit only members of the hive, etc.

What is the essence of this natural phenomenon? Let us try to find an explanation. The
nervous system of an individual insect existing outside of the colony is incapable of

performing the complex behavioral reactions regularly observed in the colony. If such
functions were genetically programmed, they would be manifest outside the colony as
well — to say nothing of the awkward question: who endowed their genes with such
capacities in the first place?

For complex behavioral reactions to occur in these colonies, a huge number of neurons
interacting within a unified system is required. How can this be explained? Nature has

found a most original way of solving this problem. The nervous system of each member
of a species — termite, ant, bee, etc. — generates a “psi-system” which creates a
protective shell around the member — since an individual member’s reaction are quite
primitive and limited (F Fi ig gs s. . 3 35 5 and 3 36 6).

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