A recurring theme in *Novacene* is Lovelock’s suspicion that linear, step-by-step reasoning is overrated. He argues that human intuition and pattern perception have been crucial in science and invention, and that language can trap us in narrow, overly logical ways of thinking.
In the context of the Novacene, this raises questions about how hyperintelligent systems will “think”. If they are purely logical calculators, they might miss aspects of Gaia that cannot be captured in simple models.
Lovelock hints that successful hyperintelligence may require something more like perception and intuition at planetary scale, sensing and responding to subtle patterns in the Earth system the way organisms do.