Stan - great formula but as I learned from Anthony Reading who wrote a lovely book on information Meaningful Information - it is the recipient that brings the meaning to the information.
PS My book What is Information was been translated into Portuguese and published in Brazil where I am doing a 4 city, 5 university speaking tour. The book has not yet appeared in English but it is scheduled to be published soon by Demo press. Regards from Brazil - Bob On 2012-03-17, at 11:17 AM, Stanley N Salthe wrote: > Concerning the meaning (or effect) of information (or constraint) in general, > I have proposed that context is crucial in modulating the effect -- in all > cases. Thus: it would be like the logical example: > > Effect = context a x Constraint ^context b > > STAN > > > > > On Fri, Mar 16, 2012 at 2:18 PM, Christophe Menant > <christophe.men...@hotmail.fr> wrote: > Dear FISers, > Indeed information can be considered downwards (physical & meaningless) and > upwards (biological & meaningful). The difference being about interpretation > or not. > It also introduces an evolutionary approach to information processing and > meaning generation. > There is a chapter on that subject in a recent book > (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Information-Computation-Philosophical-Understanding-Foundations/dp/toc/9814295477). > > “Computation on Information, Meaning and Representations.An Evolutionary > Approach” > Content of the chapter: > 1. Information and Meaning. Meaning Generation > 1.1. Information.Meaning of information and quantity of information > 1.2. Meaningful information and constraint satisfaction. A systemic approach > 2. Information, Meaning and Representations. An Evolutionary Approach > 2.1. Stay alive constraint and meaning generation for organisms > 2.2. The Meaning Generator System (MGS). A systemic and evolutionary approach > 2.3. Meaning transmission > 2.4. Individual and species constraints. Group life constraints. Networks of > meanings > 2.5. From meaningful information to meaningful representations > 3. Meaningful Information and Representations in Humans > 4. Meaningful Information and Representations in Artificial Systems > 4.1. Meaningful information and representations from traditional AI to > Nouvelle AI. Embodied-situated AI > 4.2. Meaningful representations versus the guidance theory of representation > 4.3. Meaningful information and representations versus the enactive approach > 5. Conclusion and Continuation > 5.1. Conclusion > 5.2. Continuation > A version close to the final text can be reached at > http://crmenant.free.fr/2009BookChapter/C.Menant.211009.pdf > > As Plamen says, we may be at the beginning of a new scientific revolution. > But I’m afraid that an understanding of the meaning of information needs > clear enough an understanding of the constraint at the source of the meaning > generation process. And even for basic organic meanings coming from a “stay > alive” constraint, we have to face the still mysterious nature of life. And > for human meanings, the even more mysterious nature of human mind. > This is not to discourage our efforts in investigating these questions. Just > to put a stick in the ground showing where we stand. > Best, > Christophe > Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:47:28 +0100 > From: pcmarijuan.i...@aragon.es > To: fis@listas.unizar.es > Subject: [Fis] [Fwd: Re: Physics of computing]--Plamen S. > > -------- Mensaje original -------- > Asunto: Re: [Fis] Physics of computing > Fecha: Fri, 16 Mar 2012 13:24:38 +0100 > De: Dr. Plamen L. Simeonov <plamen.l.simeo...@gmail.com> > Para: Pedro C. Marijuan <pcmarijuan.i...@aragon.es> > Referencias: <20120316041607.66ffc68000...@1w8.tpn.terra.com> > <4f6321c3.5000...@aragon.es> > > > +++++++++++ > > Dear All, > > I could not agree more with Pedro's opinion. The referred article is > interesting indeed. but, information is only physical in the narrow sense > taken by conventional physicalistic-mechanistic-computational approaches. > Such a statement defends the reductionist view at nature: sorry. But > information is more than bits and Shanno's law and biology has far more to > offer. I think we are at the beginning of a new scientific revolution. So, we > may need to take our (Maxwell) "daemons" and (Turing) "oracles" closer under > the lens. In fact, David Ball, the author of the Nature paper approached me > after my talk in Brussels in 2010 on the Integral Biomathics approach and > told me he thinks it were a step in the right direction: biology driven > mathematics and computation. > > By the way, our book of ideas on IB will be released next month by Springer: > http://www.springer.com/engineering/computational+intelligence+and+complexity/book/978-3-642-28110-5 > If you wish to obtain it at a lower price (65 EUR incl. worldwide delivery) > please send me your names, mailing addresses and phone numbers via email to: > pla...@simeio.org. There must be at least 9 orders to keep that discount > price.. > > Best, > > Plamen > > > > On Fri, Mar 16, 2012 at 12:19 PM, Pedro C. Marijuan > <pcmarijuan.i...@aragon.es> wrote: > Dear discussants, > > I tend to disagree with the motto "information is physical" if taken too > strictly. Obviously if we look "downwards" it is OK, but in the "upward" > direction it is different. Info is not only physical then, and the dimension > of self-construction along the realization of life cycle has to be entered. > Then the signal, the info, has "content" and "meaning". Otherwise if we > insist only in the physical downward dimension we have just conventional > computing/ info processing. My opinion is that the notion of absence is > crucial for advancing in the upward, but useless in the downward. > By the way, I already wrote about info and the absence theme in a 1994 or > 1995 paper in BioSystems... > > best > > ---Pedro > > > > walter.riof...@terra.com.pe escribió: > Thanks John and Kevin to update issues in information, computation, energy > and reality. > I would like point out to other articles more focused in how coherence and > entanglement are used by living systems (far from thermal equilibrium): > > Engel G.S., Calhoun T.R., Read E.L., Ahn T.K., Mancal T., Cheng Y.C., > Blankenship R.E., Fleming G.R. (2007) Evidence for wavelike energy transfer > through quantum coherence in photosynthetic systems. Nature, 446(7137): > 782-786. > > Collini E., Scholes G. (2009) Coherent intrachain energy in migration in a > conjugated polymer at room temperature. Science, vol. 323 No. 5912 pp. > 369-373. > > Gauger E.M., Rieper E., Morton J.J.L., Benjamin S.C., Vedral V. (2011) > Sustained Quantum Coherence and Entanglement in the Avian Compass. Phys. Rev. > Lett., 106: 040503. > > Cia, J. et al, (2009) Dynamic entanglement in oscillating molecules. > arXiv:0809.4906v1 [quant-ph] > > > Sincerely, > > > Walter > > > > > _______________________________________________ > fis mailing list > fis@listas.unizar.es > https://webmail.unizar.es/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fis > > > _______________________________________________ > fis mailing list > fis@listas.unizar.es > https://webmail.unizar.es/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fis > > > > Dr. Plamen L. Simeonov > landline: +49.30.38.10.11.25 > fax/ums: +49.30.48.49.88.26.4 > mobile: +44.12.23.96.85.69 > email: pla...@simeio.org > URL: www.simeio.org > > ------------------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ fis mailing list > fis@listas.unizar.es https://webmail.unizar.es/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fis > > _______________________________________________ > fis mailing list > fis@listas.unizar.es > https://webmail.unizar.es/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fis > > > _______________________________________________ > fis mailing list > fis@listas.unizar.es > https://webmail.unizar.es/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fis ______________________ Robert K. Logan Chief Scientist - sLab at OCAD Prof. Emeritus - Physics - U. of Toronto www.physics.utoronto.ca/Members/logan
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