Let me summarize what was described in previous articles, and let’s sum up the intermediate results. I will do this using the example of the simplest creatures, which we both can and cannot call living and thinking. These are plants: flowers and trees.

We can hardly say that trees, fungi, molds, bacteria and single-celled organisms have a logic that is similar to that of humans. At the same time, they have a certain behavior, which we can call logic.

This logic is interesting because it is elementary. Humanity is not yet able to synthesize an artificial plant in such a way as to create a minimally living organism, such as grass, bush, tree or lichen, from holocellulose, lingin (a mixture of polymers), minerals, chlorophyll, amino acids, etc. But this is not so interesting to us, because we want to understand how a tree thinks. Let’s “remove” (restore) the logic of their actions.

The general idea of the tree is:

• Self-reproduction
• Development, growth

Self-reproduction is achieved through fruits (seed reproduction, vegetative, asexual), roots, shoots, brood buds (generative reproduction, sexual). This is a rather mechanical thing, and it is rather interesting from the point of view of the complexity and variety of transformation, division, growth and development.

Development, growth, is achieved through the consumption of substances and the presence of conditions that allow the tree to grow. Let’s omit the details, because they are also not interesting from a logical point of view.

Tree logic is based on movement. The tree begins to grow. Growth is characterized by roots growing, a stem or trunk growing, and leaves growing on the stem and branches. All this happens as if according to a pattern. And if it were possible to get two identical seeds and create the same conditions for each of them, then two identical trees would grow.

The event for a tree to begin to grow is the creation of conditions for growth from a pit (such as a cherry) or sufficient warmth as spring gives way to winter. Life glimmers somewhere deep inside a seed or seed. Life is understood as 1) the ability to begin growth and transformation from external energy and resources (water, light, heat), 2) the ability to use internal reserves: a shriveled seed will not be able to grow due to lack of water. So far there is no mystery in the concept of life associated with the soul, existentiality or will.

There is no logic in growth as such, it is a function of time (over a certain amount of time the tree will grow several centimeters). Logic is revealed with the appearance of features or limitations of the environment and external influences.

The logic of a tree does not coincide with strict physical logic, unambiguous and consistent. Indeed, the logic of the tree is deterministic. That is, under the same conditions, in the same circumstances, trees will grow the same (let’s assume that their bones are also more or less the same, although there are not even two identical drops of water in the world). But unlike physical objects, a tree continually adapts to changing laws and conditions every time.

For example, a tree senses the source of the sun and turns its leaves towards the sun. If a root hits an obstacle, the tree tries to get around this obstacle. Just as if the trunk is trying to avoid an obstacle on its way to the sun. However, if the root hits an insurmountable obstacle, it stops growing. However, the forces that could have gone into its growth are redistributed to other parts of the tree.

The point of this tree logic is adaptability. Can a tree live with its leaves turned the wrong way, not directly towards the sun? Yes, it can (the principle of necessity is fulfilled). But if it turns its leaves towards the sun, it will feel even better. Adaptability expresses the principle of maximizing benefit, usefulness, and value.

Of course, trees are not aware of benefit and value as a term, but the thinking patterns at their level are aimed specifically at maximizing value. The increase in value is expressed in the distribution of resources – nutrients and growth abilities – the tree needs to strengthen both the root system and thicken the trunk so that it can support the crown, and direct growth to leaves and branches.

I previously referred to energy as the primary source of all action and logic, and with trees energy is also limited – their growth is limited by the capabilities of the tree species itself and how much the roots and leaves can extract resources from the environment, so resource allocation is an important part of tree logic.

By the way, here lies the source of preconscious logic. Both trees and people use mental schemes, but do not understand the ideas of these schemes. They act for the sake of the result, but are not aware of the reason: as in this case, the idea of value.

The second important property (besides adaptability) of tree logic is independence. The trees themselves are a source of adaptability: they themselves decide in which direction to redistribute resources, how to grow, how to obtain more resources. This distinguishes them from physical objects (grains of sand, stones, water), which themselves do not decide anything – external forces decide everything for them and control them entirely. Trees are the simplest creatures that combine both decision and action – they are simultaneously the subject of control, the object of control, the subject of action, and the object of action.

The tree logic level is a step beyond the logic of simple physical operations. There is also logic in the opposition of physical forces. There are two rules here: 1) forces interact with each other, 2) as a consequence of entropy (energy dissipation), inertia gradually defeats any force, and any body tends to rest and balance.

The logic of physical forces is expressed in “necessity” – it cannot be otherwise, since all bodies in the physical world are acted upon by physical forces. Physical forces have the property of immediacy – they act immediately, without delay or convention. This immediacy lies the basis of the physical concept of fields – gravitational, electromagnetic.

Sometimes in the logic of physical forces we can find what we can characterize as “intelligence”, for example, the desire of bodies to find balance towards equilibrium. Also, sometimes the actions of physical forces take on a unique character, for example, frosty patterns on glass. But in a pragmatic sense, the basis of frosty patterns is the relief – small scratches on the glass itself and the movement of air inside the room, that is, a combination of predetermined, repeatable and random factors.

So why then can we even talk about physical logic? But because the impulses that cause changes in objects, and subsequent changes in position and influence on other objects, have a rational cause. That is, in such sequences there is a cause-and-effect relationship. But that’s all!

In addition to adaptability, the logic of a tree lies in great complexity, in the syncretism of many mechanisms: development in the form of seed germination, rooting in the soil, branching, leaf formation, flowering, fruit formation, and so on. I use the term “syncretism” (a combination of opposing ideas) because the growth of roots and the growth of leaves have different purposes individually, but as a whole they are equally necessary for the tree as a united creature.

There must be a basis for adaptability. What causes the leaf to turn towards the sun? The basis is an idea or hypothesis: a suggestion that something could be even better than the current situation – an idea of ​​the possibility of increasing value or a test of possibility. Most likely, this is the first or primordial idea of a living being.

If a leaf has a light sensor, how will it know that by turning to the left it will receive more light? There are two options – either it has auxiliary light sensors that clearly indicate this – similar to a person’s peripheral (side) vision. In this case, the tree must have a comparative structure of two sensors, which implements an event for leaf rotation. The event is triggered if the difference between the peripheral and direct sensor is positive.

An alternative solution would be to use only one – a direct sensor. Taking the assumption that it is possible to increase the flow of light when changing the position of the leaf, the tree can, as a test or study, turn the leaf in different directions and find out whether there is more light when turning than in the current position. In reality, the tree does not follow this method, because for this the tree will need memory and comparison of states – the tree has not yet matured to this.