Chris Angelico wrote:
> All software can be expressed as lambda calculus. The point being, all > software is mathematics...
With enough software, you can simulate anything. That means that the entire universe can be expressed as lambda calculus. Does that mean that nothing can ever be patented, because it's all just mathematics?
Great question... the simple answer is, no. But the extended answer is a little complicated and not well understood by most folks, so its worth talking about, at least a lot. You may skip to the last paragraph for the main point... or stay tuned for the explanation. Mathematical processes and algorithms are not patentable (by rule) because they are 'natural' and 'obvious'. In other words, a natural set of laws (mathematics, just one example) are universally used naturally and obviously by all humans in the course of thinking, creating, expressing, &etc., and therefore these ideas are not patentable because they are the natural and obvious 'stuff' from which and through which the human mind processes the natural world. You cannot patent the Pythagorean theorem. You cannot patent addition, nor subtraction, nor the logical concepts for boolean algebra.... nor can you patent lambda calculus. These are just examples. You cannot patent the mathematical concept of nand gate; however, Motorola may patent the mechanical electrical implementation of the nand gate (CMOS 4011 quad nand). Also, Texas Instruments may patent their mechanical electrical implementation of the nand gate concept (TTL sn7400n quad chip). The chips are patentable, but the mathematical concept 'behind' the chips is not patentable. Software is another sort of animal entirely. Because software is not just based on mathematics--- IT IS mathematics. In other words, software is not more and not less than an extension of the human mind 'itself' in mathematical and logical expression across symbol extended through a machine framework. All humans naturally and obviously process the world around them (regardless of race, creed, ethnic origin, color, geography, %etc) through input, control, arithmetic, logic, and output. Software running in a machine is nothing more nor less than software running in my own mind, or in your own mind. The machine (as a logical and mathematical symbol processor) sorts out world realities (modalities) via input, control, arithmetic, logic, and output. All software is the 'stuff' of natural and obvious human thought, creativity, expression, communication, &etc. Granted, humans also have emotions and will, but for simplicity sake we will oversimplify. What has happened in the 20th century is that (to take natural language as an example) one person holds the patent on the verb. Another holds the patent on the noun. These two people cross-license their patents on the verbs and nouns, forcing the people who want to communicate with nouns and verbs to pay royalties, or to purchase noun and verb licenses, or to be forced to communicate without nouns and verbs. --- wouldn't that be interesting. To put it in simple comp sci terms (input, control, arithmetic, logic, and output) it works something like this: One corporation holds the patent on input(), and another corporation holds the patent on output(). Now then, all natural people need to use both input() and output() for communicating ( listening and speaking ) within the natural framework for their human endeavors, and yet they are forced by law to pay for a license to be able to use input() and output()...
... their control, arithmetic and logic are not much good to them otherwise. The holders of the input() and output() patents of course cross license so that they are held harmless and so that they alone (the oligarchy) control what is input() and output() and by whom. Needless to say, this is not a good thing. Software idea patents lay ownership to *so called* intellectual property. In other words, those who wield software idea patents believe that they hold ownership over the natural and obvious 'stuff' of human thinking, creating, organizing, sorting, communicating, &etc. This is nothing other than an intellectual slave trade. The slave trade of human bodily bondage (which still goes on unpunished today, but waning) holds that persons may be owned. The slave trade of the late 20th and early 21st centuries holds that person's thoughts and thinking processes may be owned! This intellectual slave trade must end, now! Think about this... if I tell you something of substance little or great and it gives you pause for thought, then I have placed my thoughts (my process, my programming, my intellectual property) into your head... you are now thinking things that I myself have thought about prior to you. Now then, I lay hold to the concept that I now own those thoughts (it is my intellectual property you are now thinking of) and you therefore are bound (by law) to license your thoughts to me for a sum of money, or else quit thinking those thoughts ! Do you see how absolutely ludicrous this sounds... and yet, it is law in the U.S. and in other places as well. By allowing software idea patents --by law we as a society are permitting the software oligarchy to enslave and to persecute all human thinkers. We are saying that the natural and obvious 'stuff' of human thought and creativity may be owned... that a person's thoughts may be owned and therefore controlled or sold or shut down. Software is a pure extension of human thought and creativity and must be permitted to be free (as in freedom) from control or usurpations of any kind. Input, control, arithmetic, logic, and output must reign free and unhindered (as in free thought and expression) regardless whether those natural human processes are live in the natural human mind or whether those natural processes are expanded across processor frameworks or networks (global or local). Human thought, creativity, and expression must be free (as in freedom). Software must be free (as in freedom) for a free society. Free Software - Free Society.
kind regards, m harris -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
