BCSSS

International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics

2nd Edition, as published by Charles François 2004 Presented by the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science Vienna for public access.

About

The International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics was first edited and published by the system scientist Charles François in 1997. The online version that is provided here was based on the 2nd edition in 2004. It was uploaded and gifted to the center by ASC president Michael Lissack in 2019; the BCSSS purchased the rights for the re-publication of this volume in 200?. In 2018, the original editor expressed his wish to pass on the stewardship over the maintenance and further development of the encyclopedia to the Bertalanffy Center. In the future, the BCSSS seeks to further develop the encyclopedia by open collaboration within the systems sciences. Until the center has found and been able to implement an adequate technical solution for this, the static website is made accessible for the benefit of public scholarship and education.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

INFORMATION SPACE (Mathematics of) 2)

D. GERNERT tries to give a precise mathematical meaning to information space.

He quotes SNEDDON's general definition of space in his "Encyclopedic Dictionary of Mathematics": "The term space is used in mathematics for any set when certain types of properties are to be discussed or when it is intended to use some sort of geometrical terminology"(2000, p. 255)

Therefrom GERNERT defines "… an information space by a set consisting of elements (of a special kind), together with possible relations between these elements, both the elements and the relations may vary in the course of time".

"An element is understood as an irreductible unit which still carries some semantic contents and particularly has the character of a statement or proposition- no matter whether… - bits, bytes, characters, words, pixels, or other small parts whatsoever"(Ibid).

Further on, GERNERT describes the mathematical structure of the information space, which includes:

- standard and non standard links

- cluster structure

- Similarity metrics (internal and external)

- emerging structures in dynamical processes

Interestingly, GERNERT states in his concluding remarks that "Information spaces in the sense outlined…can be easily modeled on an ordinary PC"(Ibid, p. 261)

Categories

  • 1) General information
  • 2) Methodology or model
  • 3) Epistemology, ontology and semantics
  • 4) Human sciences
  • 5) Discipline oriented

Publisher

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science(2020).

To cite this page, please use the following information:

Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (2020). Title of the entry. In Charles François (Ed.), International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics (2). Retrieved from www.systemspedia.org/[full/url]


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