# One Evolutionary Process Can Generate Infinite Species by Kurt Gray > “Just as evolution can create infinite species by expressing a common process in specific environments, so too can the mind create infinite mental species. One can no sooner count emotions or moral concerns than snowflakes or colors. To be sure, there are descriptive similarities and differences across instances, but any groupings are arbitrary and rest heavily on the intuition of researchers. This is why scientists can never agree on the fundamental number of anything; one scientist may divide a mental experience into 3, another 4, and another 5.” > **— Kurt Gray**, *2014, Edge Annual Question, “What Scientific Idea Is Ready For Retirement?”* ## Sources and Context - **Direct Edge response and surrounding essay:** [Numbering Nature](https://www.edge.org/response-detail/25460) — Edge published this exact passage in its 2014 Annual Question collection, *WHAT SCIENTIFIC IDEA IS READY FOR RETIREMENT?*. The response page preserves the surrounding argument and qualifications. - **Complete local collection index:** [[research/Edge 2014 Full Quotation Curation|Edge 2014 Full Quotation Curation]] — retained source-first record for the complete response cohort and this passage's promotion status. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Edge|Edge]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Machine Succession|Machine Succession]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Evolutionary Roots of Silicon Valley|Valley Roots]] - **Article:** [[articles/Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution|Digital Darwinism]] - **Article:** [[articles/We Were Never Going to Make It|Never Going to Make It!]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Evolutionary Biology|Evolutionary Biology]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Evolutionary Biology|Evolutionary Biology]] - [[wiki/Evolutionary Dynamics|Evolutionary Dynamics]] - [[wiki/Evolvability|Evolvability]] - [[wiki/Species|Species]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Just as evolution can create infinite species by expressing a common process in specific environments, so too can the mind create infinite mental species. One can no sooner count emotions or moral concerns than snowflakes or colors. To be sure, there are descriptive similarities and differences across instances, but any groupings are arbitrary and rest heavily on the intuition of researchers. This is why scientists can never agree on the fundamental number of anything; one scientist may divide a mental experience into 3, another 4, and another 5.” — Kurt Gray, 2014, Edge Annual Question, “What Scientific Idea Is Ready For Retirement?” https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-kurt-gray-one-evolutionary-process-generate-infinite ```