In contrast to Pirsig's notion in the
ZenAndTheArtOfMotorcycleMaintenance of
TheMetaphysicsOfQuality, the
epistemics of quantity is the scientific structure of knowledge. As knowledge must begin with the atomic type, the smallest
quantity is its basis: for people this is the "sensata" (or
Phonon), but for the hoped-for
DataEcosystem, it is the Bit.
See
UnifiedDataModel.
I had not come across the word
epistemics so I looked it up. See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epistemics
Epistemics is a term coined in 1969 by Edinburgh University with the foundation of its School of Epistemics.
Epistemics is to be distinguished from epistemology in that this is the philosophical theory of knowledge, whereas epistemics signifies the scientific study of knowledge. Epistemics is also compared to Cognitive Science.
In the mid-1980s, the School of Epistemics was renamed as The Centre for Cognitive Science (CCS). In 1998, CCS was incorporated into the University of Edinburgh's School of Informatics.
--
JohnFletcher
I had rather thought that I invented the term, but I am not displeased that it is found elsewhere. --
MarkJanssen