TY - JOUR
T1 - On Representing Information: A Characterization of the Analog/Digital Distinction
AU - Frigerio, Aldo
AU - Giordani, Alessandro
AU - Mari, Luca
AU - Mari, Luca Paolo
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - The common account of the analog vs digital distinction is based on features of physical systems,being related to the usage of continuous vs discrete supports respectively. It is proposed here to
alternatively characterize the concepts of analog and digital as related to coding systems, of which a formal definition is given, by suggesting that the distinction refers to the strategy adopted to define the coding function: extensional in digital systems, isomorphic intensional in analog systems. This thesis is supported by examples, in particular of analog systems exploiting discrete supports, and is discussed to explain why digital coding is currently so widespread in technological and social practice.
AB - The common account of the analog vs digital distinction is based on features of physical systems,being related to the usage of continuous vs discrete supports respectively. It is proposed here to
alternatively characterize the concepts of analog and digital as related to coding systems, of which a formal definition is given, by suggesting that the distinction refers to the strategy adopted to define the coding function: extensional in digital systems, isomorphic intensional in analog systems. This thesis is supported by examples, in particular of analog systems exploiting discrete supports, and is discussed to explain why digital coding is currently so widespread in technological and social practice.
KW - Analog/digital distinction
KW - Information coding
KW - Analog/digital distinction
KW - Information coding
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10807/54854
UR - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dltc.2013.67.issue-4/issuetoc
U2 - 10.1111/1746-8361.12040
DO - 10.1111/1746-8361.12040
M3 - Article
SN - 0012-2017
VL - 67
SP - 455
EP - 483
JO - Dialectica
JF - Dialectica
ER -