Teleonic-Catalytic Impulse (TCI): A Semantotechnical Mechanism for the Actualization of the Civilizational Level of Matter Organization. Version 2.3

This article presents the hypothesis of the Teleonic-Catalytic Impulse (TCI) — a mechanism explaining the transition from the biological level of matter organization to the civilizational level. The empirical basis is the case study of the Neolithic transition from foraging to agriculture. Analysis of the transition shows that external conditions (climate, resources) are insufficient for the emergence of civilization. A synergistic, threshold-based activation of five functional modules is necessary: the projective-volitional (delayed outcomes), the symbolic-informational (knowledge fixation), the material-technological (environmental transformation), the social-organizational (division of labor), and the reflexive-regulatory (feedback). Measurable parameters (KVDS, PSZ, EEC, URT, IRP) and an integral index (CITCI) are proposed for each module. The transition requires not only technology but also a cultural-psychological restructuring. The farmer develops qualities absent in the forager: patience (waiting months for the harvest), self-restraint (not consuming the seed stock), self-discipline (regular labor without immediate reward), acceptance of collective responsibility, trust in strangers, and submission to hierarchy. Without these qualities, even the presence of seeds and land does not lead to civilization. The hypothesis generates testable predictions for archaeology, SETI, and futurology. TCI is a working hypothesis offering an operational language for the quantitative study of civilizational genesis. Its further development includes formalization within the framework of autocatalytic network theory and the calibration of parameters using historical data. --- Keywords: Teleonic-Catalytic Impulse, civilizational genesis, Neolithic transition, five modules, measurable parameters, patience, self-restraint, self-discipline.