Gain or atrophy? Proposal for a “Cognitive and Functional Security Protocol” for the use of artificial intelligence based on Marshall McLuhan’s extension/amputation theory

Abstract

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into contemporary human activities creates a paradox between productivity gains and the atrophy of mental faculties. This article proposes the development of “Cognitive Interface Security Parameters,” an operational triage protocol grounded in Marshall McLuhan’s theory of media as extension and amputation, combined with the contemporary concept of cognitive offloading. The objective is to provide a decision-making heuristic that identifies the balance between the expansion of intellectual capacities and the risk of functional obsolescence of the individual. The protocol's methodology consists of structuring an analysis matrix composed of five fundamental axes and ten analytical nuances, which evaluate everything from absolute innovation to the potential reversibility of delegated tasks. The results culminate in a protocol aimed at acting as a tool to mitigate “technological anesthesia,” preserving cognitive ballast and user autonomy in the face of automation. It is concluded that reversibility is the critical variable to ensure that AI remains an expansion tool rather than an agent of diminishing intellectual autonomy, highlighting the need for neuroscientific validation in subsequent studies.