-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Mikhail Gorelkin wrote: > ...let's use this: the minimal description, which "works". ? --Mikhail
The problem is whether or not complexity is an inherent property or an ascribed attribute. If it's an ascribed attribute, then the above is as good a definition as any... I prefer the concept of logical depth (primarily temporal aggregation); but that's effectively the same as a minimal description that works. The justification for assuming complexity is an ascribed attribute lies in parsing the word "complexity". Complexity talks about cause and effect and the "plaited" threads of cause/effect running through a system. The more threads there are and the more intertwined they are, the more complex the system. But, cause and effect are human cognitive constructs. Hence, complexity is an ascribed attribute of systems and, hence, can be defined in terms of descriptions and the efficacy of such. However, I think many people consider complexity to be an inherent property, ontologically separate from any descriptions of the system. That doesn't imply independence from intra-system sub-descriptions (e.g. one constituent that describes other constituents, making that description a constituent of the system), only that there need not be a whole system description for it to be complex. If it's true that complexity is an inherent property, then definitions like "minimal description that works" is either irrelevant or is just a _measure_ of complexity rather than a definition of it. And if that's the case, it brings us back to complexity being an ascribed attribute rather than an inherent property. =><= - -- glen e. p. ropella, 971-219-3846, http://tempusdictum.com I believe in only one thing: liberty; but I do not believe in liberty enough to want to force it upon anyone. -- H. L. Mencken -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with Mozilla - http://enigmail.mozdev.org iD8DBQFG8WGdZeB+vOTnLkoRAgJyAKDT//zvtrt/7o3R34hax7ozoiPYxgCgxi1c Vi8FwXZ8Y6femw37O6aJzAc= =lEhK -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- ============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
