An analog to the sudden belated question of the extent to which human language is novel (or not), is a precursor to a more existential revelation our culture i

An analog to the sudden belated question of the extent to which human language is novel (or not), is a precursor to a more existential revelation our culture is going to have, the extent to which the entire precept of the rational self-aware agent that we carry as our model of ourselves, is a confabulated falsehood maintained by our own minds. Most of what most of us do most of the time is habitual, instinctual, autonomic, pre-conscious, whatever—very few of us are present very much of the time. Even highly-analytic complex logical reasoning can and does often transpire in something akin to a "fugue state," indeed that is a much-noted aspect of technical work like most here engage in. That doesn't mean that we are not capable of genuine self-awareness, introspection, and methodical reasoned thought—but I don't think it's controversial (except in our lay conception) whether or not those things are primary or common modes of being in the world. Record yourself for 24 hours and compare honestly the sequence of your utterances and behaviors with your internal record of agency, and you'll find you are on autopilot in some sense most of the time. From this I infer that the first "real" seeming AGI will like us be not monolithic capable systems, but relatively loosely coupled aggregates, with many components serving as analogs to aspects of mind and embodiment largely distinct form and only loosely coupled to the "executive" function.