Uberdiversified by Dr. Z

My theory proposes that humanity is undergoing a cognitive-evolutionary transition marked by the emergence of a distinct lineage which I have named Homo divergens. Unlike biological speciation events such as the divergence between Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens, this transition is driven not by genetic differentiation but by cumulative cultural evolution, niche construction, and the emergence of high-abstraction cognitive systems. Drawing on anthropological, psychological, and sociocultural research, my theory reconceptualizes human development as cognitive niche formation, interbreeding of phenotypes, origins as distributed cognitive intensification, Neanderthal-like absorption as sociocultural convergence, and evidence as population-level trends consistent with the Micro-16 (Individuals) and Macro-16 (Nation-states) frameworks. My framework establishes the theoretical foundation for understanding H. divergens as an increasingly coherent and measurable cognitive lineage within Homo sapiens.

Welcome To the Project

Hi, I’m Dr. Z. Welcome to my Project. I covet your feedback and ideas. Feel free to contribute your thoughts in the form of an essay or a guest post. If you are a researcher, please contact me for information about the workflow of this project.

Contributor: Upload Your Essay
Researcher: Contact Dr. Z

RESEARCH

Not Just Autism: The Deeper Architecture of H. divergens Minds

What Einstein, Leonardo, Aquinas, Jobs, Musk, Hopkins, and Edison teach us about Homo divergens beyond autism.

Not Just Autism: The Deeper Architecture of H. divergens Minds
Read it on Substack.

U.S. HISTORY

The 13

Was colonial America cognitive split a foreshadowing to the War Between the States?

colonies-Proclamation-American-boundary-line-1763

Swing State From the Get-go: Georgia’s Cognitive Split in the Colonial Era
Read it on Substack
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New York (articles in preparation)
Virginia, North Carolina (articles in preparation)
The Other 7 (article in preparation)
The Neurodiversification of the American Mind: Eight Episodes in Cognitive Governance (article in preparation).

THEORY

Micro 16

The individual framework

The Micro16 (Individual) Framework

Homo divergens describes a minority cognitive-behavioral profile marked by high abstraction, conceptual independence, nonconformity, and a strong orientation toward innovation, systems thinking, introspection, and rule-reconstruction rather than rule-following. Its adaptive niche forms around intellectual autonomy, complexity tolerance, and exploratory problem solving, producing disproportionate contributions in science, philosophy, technology, and cultural transformation. H. divergens cognition often displays nonlinear thinking, weak social conformity pressures, and a drive to redesign or reinterpret existing systems. Across history, this profile generates institutions, ideas, and disruptions that expand knowledge, reorganize societies, and produce new forms of cultural evolution.
Homo sapiens refers to the dominant human cognitive-behavioral profile characterized by social conformity, hierarchical organization, communal identity, practical reasoning, and preference for stable, rule-based environments. Its adaptive niche is built around group cohesion, shared norms, moral consensus, and efficient replication of established cultural patterns. H. sapiens cognition tends toward concrete reasoning, emotional attunement within group structures, and preservation of social harmony. Across historical and modern contexts, this profile sustains institutions that emphasize continuity, authority, majoritarian decision making, and equilibrium within the sociocultural system.

THEORY

Macro 16

The nation-state framework

The Macro 16 (Nation-State) Framework

A H. sapiens nation-state is characterized by hierarchical governance, majoritarian legitimacy, social-norm convergence, and institutions optimized for stability, tradition, and collective identity. Its information ecology centers on consensus narratives, moral cohesion, and risk-averse policy formation. Cultural systems emphasize communal continuity, inherited structures of authority, and predictable social roles. The state’s adaptive strategy prioritizes equilibrium over experimentation, incremental rather than disruptive change, and the preservation of a unified moral-social order. Such states tend to reward conformity, regulate complexity through centralized control, and maintain cultural reproduction through shared heritage and collective norms rather than innovation-driven differentiation.
A H. divergens nation-state is defined by high institutional adaptivity, cognitive pluralism, innovation-driven policy ecosystems, and decentralized structures capable of absorbing complexity and fostering intellectual autonomy. Its information ecology favors open inquiry, systems thinking, critical discourse, and high-velocity knowledge production. Social and cultural systems reward conceptual creativity, nonconformity, and the deliberate redesign of inherited forms. The state’s adaptive strategy emphasizes flexibility, experimentation, and the continuous reorganization of institutions in response to new problems and opportunities. Such states sustain diverse subcultures, encourage disruptive innovation, and cultivate environments where high-abstraction cognitive profiles can influence scientific, technical, and cultural evolution at population scale.

ANTECEDENTS

The Jews

The question of whether certain historical populations displayed early patterns that anticipate the traits later formalized in the Macro-16 and Micro-16 frameworks invites careful, non-biological analysis. The Jewish people offer an especially interesting case. Their long history of textual reasoning, diasporic resilience, institution-centered life, and non-territorial identity sometimes resembles traits associated with what I have theorized as Homo divergens.

The Jewish People as a Psychosociocultural Precursor to Divergent Traits
This article is undergoing review.

AMERICA TODAY

The Great Neurodiversification of America

This was not merely the spread of “wokeness” but the quiet triumph of procedural morality, hypersensitivity, and literal-rule reasoning as governing virtues.

The Great Neurodiversification of America
Read it on Substack

THEORY

Precursor Theories

A neutral, structured, technical analysis identifying which evolutionary theories are most relevant as potential precursors to my Homo divergens framework. The evaluation is based strictly on conceptual alignment with the themes in the project: cognitive divergence, behavioral specialization, emergent population-level trajectories, environmental–genetic interactions, and multi-level selection pressures.

O. Wilson and the Evolution of Divergent Cognitive Strategies
This article is in preparation.

RELIGION

Psychotherapy & Religion

It is my impression that, during the past half century, American mainline churches have been changing before our eyes.

Is Theology the New Therapy?
Read it on Substack

U.S. POLITICS

America’s Two-Party System

In 21st century America, two-party politics may provide a stage on which two neurocognitive lineages negotiate, and sometimes battle, for power and dominance.

Neurodevelopmental Observations On America’s Two-Party System
Read it on Substack

U.S. POLITICS

Presidential Hall of Fame

An analysis of the top ten U.S. Presidents, their service, their accomplishments, and their cognitive-behavioral profile.

Top Ten Presidents: Which Way Did They Lean?
Article in preparation.
Presidential Hall of Fame
Currently under construction.
Divergens and Sapiens: What Two Centuries of Presidents Reveal About America’s Shifting Cognitive Style
Read it now

THEORY

Foundational Document

A foundational document explaining the Theory of Homo divergens by Dr. Mark Zuccolo.

Sapiens to Divergens Transition: A Cognitive-Evolutionary Model of Emerging Human Divergence
Document in preparation.

RELIGION

No Greater Revolution

How the ministry of Christ, which began in a backwater of the all-powerful Roman Empire, helped catalyze the cognitive mental leap from H. sapiens to H. divergens.

The 36-month Ministry of Jesus: No Greater Revolution
Read it on Substack

U.S. POLITICS

Empathy & Respect

There was a time, not too long ago, when disagreement in American life, however sharp, still assumed the possibility of decency. Rivals sparred, then shook hands. Losing an election did not make one evil, and victory did not license contempt. Today that civility feels extinct.

Wordcraft and “Nazi” Verbal Warfare
Read it on Substack
The Death of Grace: Why Empathy Has Vanished from American Political Life
This article is in preparation.

RELIGION

God: A Brief Cognitive History

From an impartial observer’s point of view, God is neither absent nor present—it is referenced. The divine exists in the dataset as the most persistent signal of humanity’s effort to explain why anything exists at all, an enduring variable pointing toward what even computation cannot compute: the totality that gives purpose to the system itself.

Noetic Voyage: A Very Short History of the Judeo-Christian God
This article is undergoing review.

The Homo Divergens Project – 5755 North Point Parkway – Suite 33 – Alpharetta, GA – 30022 – USA – Phone +1 (678) 554-5632 – Fax +1 (877) 299-0430