generalizations

The program will make extensive use of generalizations and cross-generalization. These abstractions typically may be used to develop generalizations. A generalization may be formed from a group in which all the members share some common characteristics. However, generalizations may also be formed by various arbitrary processes. And, if the program works, generalizations may be formed in response to some educational instruction. The most typical example of cross-generalization may be the consideration of similarities across individual systems of taxonomies or classes or subclasses. In this broad definition of generalization, the collections do not have to be grouped by any common characteristic and the same can go for cross-categorizations. Although this might be a misuse of the term generalization, the generalizations that my program will create may not be trees because they can potentially branch off in different directions. Indexes into data for internal searches may be formed in a similar way but I will have to think about whether the variety of branching makes sense as I am developing the program. because of the variety of forms of generalization or categorization that the program will use it is necessary for the program to keep track of the different kinds of categorization and generalization that it develops. it will put transcendent boundaries around portions of the generalizations that it develops as it uses them in particular ways. These boundaries are transcendent in that overlapping relations may be considered across them (as in cross-generalization or cross-categorization). Perhaps the terms relations and categorization are more abstract than the terms of generalization. back to Jim Bromer Theory