S aipsniai / A icles 279
LINAS KONTRIMAS
Vilniaus uni e si e as
GENOMIKA, ATMINTIS,
LANGUAGE, TIKRAS and DIRBTINIS This is a lis o he species included in his ca ego y.
I 's called in elligence. The VISCA ship
SUSIJ? Wha a e you doing?
Genomics, memo y, language, human and
a i icial in elligence. How is E e y hing
In e connec ed?
This Regula ion shall en e in o o ce on he wen ie h day ollowing ha o i s publica ion in he O icial Jou nal.
We don' jus collec in o ma ion wi h ou i e senses. Human DNA ca ies an inc edibly la ge
amoun o in o ma ion. Scien is s a e inishing coun ing he human genome. Now ha we' e
s a ing o build a i icial in elligence, i 's wo h asking ques ions abou how in o ma ion is
s o ed in human genes, whe he such in o ma ion can be decoded using, o example, combined
linguis ic and o he scien i ic me hods, wha pe cen age o ou consciousness's a chi es a e
made up o in o ma ion in DNA, and whe he i 's subjec o e bal encoding and decoding. The
sea ch o answe s o hese ques ions leads o in e disciplina i y, whe e gene icis s,
linguis s, scien is s in he ield o echnology can expand he bounda ies o human
sel -knowledge. The ollowing wo ds a e essen ial: genomics, memo y, in o ma ion s o age and coding, knowledge.
This Regula ion shall en e in o o ce on he wen ie h day ollowing ha o i s publica ion in he O icial Jou nal.
We don' jus collec in o ma ion by he i e senses. The human DNA ca ies as amoun s o
in o ma ion. Scien is s a e abou o calcula e human genes. In ligh o he p esen -day e o
o c ea e a i icial in elligence, i is wo h asking how in o ma ion abou a human being is
eco ded in genes, can such in o ma ion be decoded by applying, o example, combined
me hods o linguis ics and o he sciences, wha pe cen age o ou subconscious a chi es is
made up o he in o ma ion s o ed in DNA, and whe he i yields o e bal encoding and
decoding. The sea ch o he answe s o hese ques ions would lead us owa d a
c oss-disciplina y app oach whe e gene icis s, linguis s, and echnological scien is s could
expand he limi s o human sel -knowledge. KEYWORDS: genomics, memo y, accumula ion and
encoding o in o ma ion, cogni ion.
LINAS KONTRIMAS
280 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXIX This Regula ion shall en e in o o ce on he wen ie h day ollowing ha o i s publica ion in he O icial Jou nal o he Eu opean Union.
The elease and a ailabili y o knowledge c ea es a pa adoxical si ua ion:
knowledge ha pe mea es e e ywhe e allows he accumula ion o ac s, bu
hei abundance educes he numbe o people who can o wan o connec and
summa ize hose ac s. P o essionalism, specializa ion, becomes dange ous
because i can u n a pe son in o a na ow-minded expe who has o deal wi h he
memo y o a compu e . And o lose. Such a scena io is also dange ous because o
he human and na u al cu iosi y
mas, no as pažin i, išsiaiškin i, sup as i nebė a s a bus pe se, o ik ada, kai isa
ai eda p ie echnologinio p i aikomumo.
So wisdom can only become a wo d in a wo d, because i is unnecessa y in a
wo ld ha is desc ibed in e ms o i sel , in e ms o hings, in e ms o u ili y,
because i is only a u u e, no a echnological b eak h ough.
And ye .
In e es ingly, i would be e y in e es ing o ind ou wha con en , apa om
he ob ious poe y, ou ances o s encoded in ce ain sayings, p o e bs, sayings.
Fo example, oday's gene icis s could in e p e he ph ases "blood b o he s"
and "blood ela ionship" in a comple ely di e en way.
And wha does i mean o pass on a message by blood, om gene a ion o
gene a ion? Again, gene icis s would say clea ly: all human in o ma ion is DNA,
so he sen ence doesn' cause any complica ions...
And ye .
I would be in e es ing o ind ou i i is possible o ead he w i en human
genome in a comple ely di e en way. And wha i i we e ead along wi h
gene ics by mode n linguis s, his o ians?
Science is always pa o he mys e y. The e y ac ha a scien i ic, sensi i e
and hung y gaze leads deep in o he knowledge o he essence makes him close
o he mys ics. The la e a e also cu ious abou his and o he pa s o he
wo ld. Fo example, Indian mys ics a e a ahead o Wes e n knowledge in some
a eas o spi i ual knowledge. They ha e been cul i a ing a sys em o cen u ies
in which abs inence plays an impo an bu no he mos impo an ole.
Acco ding o Indian mys ics, his memo y is no jus wha we a e accus omed
o calling memo y […] he b ain's abili y o emembe hings ela ed o ou
expe ience. The Indian mys ics, he yogis, claim ha ou memo y is a ma e ial
a min is, ku i kaupia isą in o maciją nuo pa pasaulio sukū imo.
Skamba keis ai, be i ėl: okiame pasakyme a i os ši dies mokslininkas jau
and spi i ual body ha eads his and ha , and mo e, namely, ha , o example,
my DNA can lead o he oo s o he ee o li e.
Yes, bu did you b ing i ? Ce ainly no , because he p ecision, he igo ,
e en he d yness o science o en blocks he connec ion o di e en ideas.
Genomika, a min is, kalba, ik as i di b inis in elek as.
Kaip iskas susiję?
Insigh s om Insigh s 281
On he o he hand, being by i s e y na u e a ield o c ea i i y, science will
always emain a place whe e he e is oom o new, unexplo ed hings, and a
he same ime […] and de me hough s, a i s , seem o ha e no hing o do wi h each o he .
The human being is a complex sys em. The union and con on a ion o he
physical and spi i ual wo lds has been and will emain o a long ime he
wo ld o hopes and disappoin men s o a is s, scien is s and o he
cu ious people.
A some poin , a pe son ealizes ha i is necessa y o eco d, accumula e and
pass on his expe iences and indings o he nex gene a ion. Signs, symbols,
s o ies, w i ing, images, music - all he means ake a piece o he isible and
in isible eali y, solidi y i in hei own ways and gi e i o o he s, gi e i o he
u u e. They encode in he hope ha o he s will be able o decode. The human
mind, hough di icul , hough no all o i , is able o decode o he sys ems o
knowledge ansmission ha i has c ea ed: o example, in he 19 h cen u y,
eading he ancien Egyp ian hie oglyphs, he handw i ing used in Mesopo amia...
in he 20 h cen u y, i allowed us o open ano he , be e composing […] gene book.
Gene ics and genomics a e now apidly ad ancing h ough chemicals ou
in o ma ion o mulas in o he e y essence o human biology.
The human genes, hei combina ions, end up being coun ed. The map o human genes
allows us o explo e o he , no jus he geog aphical jou ney o homo sapiens. The
same is ue o wha we ake on his jou ney: in o ma ion encoded in genes ha is
speci ic o he species is passed on om gene a ion o gene a ion. Inhe i ance,
en i onmen al impac - e e y hing is encoded in genes. They' e no jus esponsible
o he in o ma ion, hey' e esponsible o he applica ion, he unc ion. The
human FOX2 gene is esponsible o language. So gene ics allows us o ge o know
ou sel es anew. And oday's echnology, especially he de elopmen o a i icial
in elligence, is o cing us o go back o ou na u e and ask (again) hese ques ions:
How do we s o e in o ma ion abou ou sel es a he gene ic le el? How is his
in o ma ion encoded? How do we decode i ? How is i p onounced? Is all he
in o ma ion a he gene le el "sunky" abou ma e , o is he e also knowledge
abou he spi i ual gene ics o homo sapiens? How does gene in o ma ion ge in o
he memo y we use? Is language (in he b oad sense) in ol ed in encoding such
in o ma ion, o is i jus s o ing and ansmi ing i ? Do he e exis wo d codes
ha can help "unlock" and "lock" gene in o ma ion? How does language as a whole
ela e o gene in o ma ion clus e s? Is i possible, and i so, how could i be possible
o p og am in o ma ion a he gene ic le el h ough he language code? Can we, in
p inciple, speak no only o he body bu also o he imma e ial, say, he gene ics o he soul?
LINAS KONTRIMAS
282 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXIX g . neu on o he wo ld)? When we alk
abou , o example, he Li huanian, Ge man, cinema, e c. genome, can we alk
abou mo e han jus biological in o ma ion and how ha in o ma ion can be
encoded and inhe i ed?
All o hese ques ions will no seem s ange i we jus hink o a momen abou
ou own na u e and i s mys e y. A e we c ea ed o he esul o e olu ion? Who
and when ins alled he conscience p og am in us?
So is i possible o ake an in e disciplina y app oach o e- ead he in o ma ion in
genes and look o codes ha equi e no only biochemical bu also e bal coding o
decoding? The e a e s ill many ques ions ha make li e in e es ing and meaning ul.
My hypo hesis is ha he human genome con ains encoded in o ma ion ha
ela es no only o he physical p ope ies o memo y and ansmission, bu also
o he spi i ual p ope ies o memo y and ansmission, and ha he phenomenon
o language should connec hese wo domains and allow he encoding and decoding
o he accumula ed in o ma ion, ans e ing i om he gene ic memo y o he
psychological and e bal.
I'm no going o lie o you.
The e a e al eady some se ious pi alls in he hypo hesis i sel . To me, hese
di icul ies do no signal he impossibili y o he hypo hesis i sel . On he
con a y, hey a e only b igh s imuli ha allow us o connec di e en pa s
in o a whole. One o he di icul ies has o do wi h he de ini ion o p ope ies.
We can mo e o less lis and desc ibe he physical quali ies o man, bu he
spi i ual ones a e no so easily subjec ed o such an ac ion. This is whe e he
a ea o opinion, he a ea o a i ude, becomes e y impo an . Does his mean
ha such a de ini ion o spi i ual quali ies is no possible? I don hink so. Thei
exis ence is doub ed by he uni , and he language is able o de ine he p esen subjec .
Ano he di icul y is memo y. Gene ic memo y could be compa ed o a lib a y
o in o ma ion abou us, homo sapiens, in a somewha simplis ic way. Tha
knowledge in o ma ion eco ded in a ce ain chemical medium. Neu ologis s,
who s udy he human b ain, name a eas ha a e esponsible o memo y, such
as he empo al lobe. I 's been said ha we s o e ou memo ies h ough
emo ions. Bu is ha all? Can you eplenish ou memo y wi h in o ma ion om
he gene ic laye ? My gu ells me i can and i does. The e o e, he ques ion is
qui e logical how? Because he p ocesses ha ake place in us ha e he abili y
o be unde s ood, ha is, o be ansla ed in o wo ds.
Genomika, a min is, kalba, ik as i di b inis in elek as.
Kaip iskas susiję?
Insigh s om Insigh s 283
So i in o ma ion exis s, i he e a e places whe e i can be eleased, whe e i can
be sha ed, he e mus be ways o ollow his pa h, o maybe e en epea i .
The Commission's p oposal o a di ec i e on he p o ec ion o wo ke s om he isks ela ed o exposu e o ca cinogens a wo k is based on he p inciple o p opo ionali y.
I happened like any no mal humani a ian: al hough he exac sciences ollowed,
bu o a ious easons he school was a om hem, bu he espec o
his ield o knowledge emained and g ew.
I was u he s eng hened by he philosophical p o ision ha man is no
di ided, his knowledge mus be as connec ed as possible. I'm no alking abou
speci ic a eas o esea ch. I'm alking abou he wisdom ha uni es all
knowledge, and i 's c ea ed by any deepe scien i ic knowledge. Who, bu no
necessa ily, knows how o desc ibe, o ell, o make a comp ehensible p ide.
I' e asked mysel many imes i i 's possible o answe he ques ions aised in
he p esen a ion o his hypo hesis wi h he help o linguis s, genomicis s,
neu oscien is s, psychologis s and compu e scien is s. Bu y o unleash he
cu iosi y, he imagina ion unde nea h his sec ion:
Gene ics can supplemen he knowledge o o he sciences ha s udy ances y.
In o ma ion ansmi ed by genes, g ouped, linked by genes and compa ed wi h he
gene ic in o ma ion o o he popula ions, allows conclusions o be d awn abou he
o igin o he popula ion. Human DNA, ansmi ed om gene a ion o gene a ion,
con ains in o ma ion abou he his o y o ou ances o s. The e o e, mode n s udies
o he gene ic di e si y o p esen -day popula ions help o e eal e en hose aspec s
o human his o y abou which he e is e y li le an h opological and a chaeological da a o only hypo heses.
I 's called he Kuczynski Valley.
The gene coun ing me hod […] is a g ouping and s udy o quan i a i e in o ma ion.
Then we ead o he in o ma ion: abou inhe i ance, abou disease, al hough he
basis emains he same - he decoding o genome in o ma ion. In Ap il 2003, i was
announced ha he human genome had been scanned. I is es ima ed ha we ha e
abou 35,000 genes. Bu : Today, i is known ha only a small pa o he genome
makes up unc ionally impo an uni s o he genus. The o he pa o he DNA is
called he non-coding pa . Howe e , his s a emen is likely o be only pa ially
co ec .
Wha in o ma ion is ansmi ed in o he pa s? I can be s udied by biochemical
me hods. And wha i we looked a he in o ma ion encoded in he DNA in a
di e en way, om he e i o y o o he sciences, bu also om a p ac ical
pe spec i e, o example, om he pe spec i e o in o ma ion echnology, om
he pe spec i e o a i icial in elligence? Would a mul idisciplina y app oach open up ano he DNA eading code?
The di e si y o he Kuczynski genome: Li huanians in Eu ope, 2004

LINAS KONTRIMAS
284 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXIX
V. Kučinskas, i damas genomą, pasi elkė ieną iš humani a inių mokslų –
he s o y. His esea ch opens up a new space o he explana ion o Li huanian
o igin. The scien is came o he e i o y o his o y consis en ly con inuing
his gene ic esea ch. His ques ion "Wha is he Li huanian genome?" ga e
imp essi e esul s. The scien is wen om he known ield (genome) o he
mix u e (e hnogenesis). Appa en ly, he e's a e e se way o do i .
We know ha humans a e bo n wi h an inna e abili y o lea n a language. In a
pa icula linguis ic en i onmen , a pe son also acqui es he g amma o a
pa icula language, acqui es a sense o language. We al eady know ha he gene
esponsible o language has been desc ibed. We know ha humans ha e o he
inna e quali ies: a achmen , eelings, alues (i accep s o ejec s - ha 's
ano he hing, i 's impo an ha he e's a code gi en o unde s and hem, o
g oup hem, o a chi e hem). Wha i such in o ma ion, igu a i ely speaking, is also ansmi ed h ough blood?
Asking such ques ions is e y complica ed. I 's like ying o co e up wha you
can' co e up, ie up wha you can' ie up... Bu my gu ells me ha he ime o
do ha is igh now, when we ha e so much knowledge abou he en i onmen and
abou ou sel es. And ha knowledge keeps g owing, e en hough human na u e esea ch keeps u ning he wheel.
And also:
Al hough each o us is unique, he o e all es ima e is ha he di e ences
be ween people on he DNA le el a e only 0.1 pe cen , on a e age. So ha 's
99.9 pe cen . DNA sequences a e consis en .
The genome can be compa ed o a book because i also con ains he le e s A, T,
G, and C (i.e. nucleo ides) in he collec ion. The di e ences be ween each human
genome book a e e y small compa ed o ano he genome, says V. Kučinskas.
Simila ly, people a e made up o he same, only sligh ly di e en , mixed se s o
ins inc s, wo ds, eelings, expe iences. They' e all made om he same clay...
he e's jus one unknown pa icle ha makes us unique.
The abili y o hink is also gi en o all. The chain o hough is clea : i shows ha
y imas – ikižodinė būsenų s adija – įžodinimas ( aiška) – pa y imas... Man a -
he e is a c ack he e. When we hink, we don' jus ope a e on in o ma ion om
he i e senses. We also "app oach" in o ma ion in he body, say, in o ma ion ha
is gene ically encoded and passed on om gene a ion o gene a ion.
Wha do you mean? - Whe e is i ?
Ce ain his o ical memo y, wisdom codes and hei sys ems also exis . They may
be passed on o u u e gene a ions in he same way ha in o ma ion is passed
on h ough genes. I is possible ha he codes o his o ical expe ience (in he
b oades sense) a e also w i en in genes. Pa o ha in o ma ion, pa o
Genomika, a min is, kalba, ik as i di b inis in elek as.
Kaip iskas susiję?
hose codes ha people inhe i by na u e, we say in ui i ely, wi hou ou
indi idual expe ience. You spend you whole li e lea ning how o decode a pa .
Bo h his o ical and s a is ical s udies a e needed o econs uc human
e olu ion. In o de o unde s and human e olu ion, physical and social
an h opology, a chaeology, demog aphy and linguis ics a e equally impo an ,
says V. Kučinskas.
The Road o Pe di ion
In 2017, I sha ed my hypo hesis wi h wo highly espec ed academics, P o .
G asilda Blaziene, a well-known P ussian and language esea che , and P o .
Vaidučiu Kučinsku, a well-known gene icis , also known o he gene al public as a
Li huanian genome esea che .
I'm g a e ul o he academics o lis ening o my easoning and saying ha
ideas a e wo h ca e ul and in-dep h esea ch. The hypo hesis, no ocusing on
a single objec o s udy, equi es a la ge eam o in e disciplina y eams. I is
a g ea pleasu e ha bo h academics ha e decided o con ibu e o his s udy
and lead he espec i e eams o scien is s. Today he e is a sea ch o
possibili ies o he implemen a ion o he p ojec , a sea ch o unding. The
cos s, compa ed o he possible esul s and bene i s o many sciences and he
p ac ical wo ld, a e no la ge, bu hey a e essen ial. In addi ion o in ellec ual
esou ces, we also need labo a o ies, ma e ials o gene ic esea ch. The e's
an appeal. We a e wai ing.
The e o e, he oad, e en hough i had a solid ounda ion unde i s ee ,
wi h e y expe ienced and hono able iends by i s side, s ill s ood i m in he hi s y mo ning smoke.
Deli e ed on 22 No embe 2018
LINAS KONTRIMAS
Vilniaus uni e si e as
The Commission he e o e
concludes ha he aid is compa ible wi h he in e nal ma ke wi hin he meaning o A icle 107 (3) (c) o he T ea y.