# Taking Cognition Seriously: A generalised physics of cognition

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2108.01229 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.01229/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 1 of its 21 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 3 Aug 2021.

## Builds on (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Interacting Conceptual Spaces I : Grammatical Composition of Concepts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1703.08314/) (2017)

## Abstract (arXiv)

The study of complex systems through the lens of category theory consistently proves to be a powerful approach. We propose that cognition deserves the same category-theoretic treatment. We show that by considering a highly-compact cognitive system, there are fundamental physical trade-offs resulting in a utility problem. We then examine how to do this systematically, and propose some requirements for "cognitive categories", before investigating the phenomenona of topological defects in gauge fields over conceptual spaces.