Department of Intelligent Interaction Technologies, Institute of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.
School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Sci Rep. 2024 Nov 30;14(1):29758. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-79232-2.
Integrated information theory (IIT) assesses the degree of consciousness in living organisms from an information-theoretic perspective. This theory can be generalised to other systems, including those exhibiting criticality. In this study, we applied IIT to the collective behaviour of Plecoglossus altivelis and observed that the group integrity (Φ) was maximised at the critical state. Multiple levels of criticality were identified within the group, existing as distinct subgroups. Moreover, these fragmented critical subgroups coexisted alongside the overall criticality of the group. The distribution of high-criticality subgroups was heterogeneous across both time and space. Notably, core fish in the high-criticality subgroups were less affected by internal and external stimuli compared to those in low-criticality subgroups. These findings are consistent with previous interpretations of critical phenomena and offer a new perspective on the dynamics of an empirical critical state.
整合信息理论（IIT）从信息论的角度评估生物体的意识程度。该理论可以推广到其他系统，包括表现出临界性的系统。在这项研究中，我们将 IIT 应用于 Plecoglossus altivelis 的集体行为，观察到在临界状态下，组完整性（Φ）最大化。在组内确定了多个层次的临界性，存在不同的亚组。此外，这些碎片化的临界亚组与组的整体临界性共存。高临界性亚组的分布在时间和空间上都是不均匀的。值得注意的是，与低临界性亚组相比，高临界性亚组中的核心鱼对内外部刺激的反应较小。这些发现与以前对临界现象的解释一致，并为经验临界态的动力学提供了新的视角。
