ONT Re: Zeroth Order Theories (ZOT's)
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DM = Douglas McDavid
DM: Thanks for both the original and additional response. I'm not trying to
single you out, as I have been picking on various postings in a similar
manner ever since I started contributing to this discussion. I agree with
you that the task of this working group is non-trivially difficult. In fact,
I believe we are still a long way from a clear and useful agreement about what
constitutes "upper" ontology, and what it would mean to standardize it. However,
I don't agree that the only place to make progress is in tiny domains of things.
I've contributed the thought that a fundamental, upper-level concept is the
concept of system, and that that would be a good place to begin. And I'll
never be able to refrain from evaluating the content as well as the form
of any examples presented for consideration here. Probably should
accompany these comments with a ;-)
Doug,
There will never be a standard universal ontology
of the absolute essential impertubable monolithic
variety that some people still dream of in their
fantasies of spectating on and speculating about
a pre-relativistically non-participatory universe
from their singular but isolated gods'eye'views.
The bells tolled for that one many years ago,
but some of the more blithe of the blissful
islanders have just not gotten the news yet.
But there is still a lot to do that would be useful
under the banner of a "standard upper ontology",
if only we stay loose in our interpretation
of what that implies in practical terms.
One likely approach to the problem would be to take
a hint from the afore-allusioned history of physics --
to inquire for whom, else, the bell tolls -- and to
see if there are any bits of wisdom from that prior
round of collective experience that can be adapted
by dint of analogy to our present predicament.
I happen to think that there are.
And there the answer was, not to try and force a return,
though lord knows they all gave it their very best shot,
to an absolute and imperturbable framework of existence,
but to recognize the particpatory relationship that all
partakers have to the constitution of that framing, yes,
even unto those who would abdictators and abstainees be.
But what does that imply about some shred of a standard?
It means that we are better off seeking, not a standard,
one-size-fits-all ontology, but more standard resources
for trying to interrelate diverse points of view and to
transform the data that's gathered from one perspective
in ways that it can most appropriately be compared with
the data that is gathered from other standpoints on the
splendorous observational scenes and theorematic stages.
That is what I am working on.
And it hasn't been merely
for a couple of years.
As to this bit:
o-------------------------------------------------o
| |
| ( living_thing , non_living ) |
| |
| (( animal ),( vegetable ),( mineral )) |
| |
| ( living_thing ,( animal ),( vegetable )) |
| |
| ( mineral ( non_living )) |
| |
o-------------------------------------------------o
My 5-dimensional Example, that I borrowed from some indifferent source
of what is commonly recognized as "common sense" -- and I think rather
obviously designed more for the classification of pre-modern species
of whole critters and pure matters of natural substance than the
motley mixture of un/natural and in/organic conglouterites that
we find served up on the menu of modernity -- was not intended
even so much as a toy ontology, but simply as an expository
example, concocted for the sake of illustrating the sorts
of logical interaction that occur among four different
patterns of logical constraint, all of which types
arise all the time no matter what the domain, and
which I believe that my novel forms of expression,
syntactically speaking, express quite succinctly,
especially when you contemplate the complexities
of the computation that may flow and must follow
from even these meagre propositional expressions.
Yes, systems -- but -- even here usage differs in significant ways.
I have spent ten years now trying to integrate my earlier efforts
under an explicit systems banner, but even within the bounds of
a systems engineering programme at one site there is a wide
semantic dispersion that issues from this word "system".
I am committed, and in writing, to taking what we so
glibly and prospectively call "intelligent systems"
seriously as dynamical systems. That has many
consequences, and I have to pick and choose
which of those I may be suited to follow.
But that is too long a story for now ...
Jon Awbrey
P.S. ";-)"? Somehow that has always looked like
the Chesshire Cat's grin to me ...
J.A.
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