Comparison and Analysis of the Characteristics of Natural Information and Social Information–From Aristotle’s “10 Material Category” to “12 Information Attribute” of Information Science ^†

Abstract

The Call for Papers for the 2023 Beijing Summit says that “Paradigm Change in the Information Discipline”, has been selected as the theme of the ISSI’ 2023 Summit by the sponsor and organizer. The purpose of this paper is to compare and analyze the existence and process of the “material” and the “information” and their respective “characteristics”; to discuss why the two disciplines produce different paradigms, namely, different “scientific views” and “methodologies”; and, finally, to point out that in the process of the transformation of scientific paradigm, our worldview will inevitably complete the leap from Aristotle’s “10 material categories” to the “12 information attributes” of information science.

1. Introduction

If we use modern academic language to compare the doctrines of Plato and Aristotle, we can say that Aristotle is the first “physicist”, and Plato is the first “informationist”. Plato said that the world is “divided into two parts”: material being and immaterial being; the existence of material is characterized by “change”, and the existence of immaterial is characterized by “permanence”; people are composed of body and mind; the soul has higher value than the body [1].

Theoretical informationists define information as “the meaning of signals and symbols”, and applied informationists define information with characteristics in various fields (such as computer, communication, control, and various media fields). Information philosophers, based on “informationism”, define information as “immaterial existence”, which directly inherits and follows Plato’s terminology [2]. In essence, Plato’s “idea theory” is an “information theory”, which is the ancient Greek version of modern and contemporary information theory.

If Aristotle’s “10 material categories” is a brief summary of his physicalism, then the “12 information attributes” sublimated from the theory of ideas is the image summary of the spirit of the information age. The trend of the information age in the 21st century leads and pushes us to say goodbye to Aristotle’s Meta-Physics and start thinking about the contemporary Theoretical Informatics. We are revising our worldview, that is, we are witnessing a transformation from the paradigm of material science to the paradigm of information science, from the scientific view and methodology of natural science to the scientific view and methodology of information science.

2. On Aristotle’s “Category Theory” and Its Scope of Application

Aristotle was the first to advocate and recommend the “physicalism” through his classic works “Categories” and “Metaphysics”. Aristotle’s “metaphysics” ontology determines the basic color of western philosophy, epistemology, and axiology; the physicalism advocated by Aristotle has defined the overall trend of the western philosophical worldview and the western scientific outlook and methodology over the past 2000 years. Aristotle’s physicalism claims that everything in the world is the existence of “physical thing”; it rejects abstract existence and supports concrete reality. Physicalism has always been an ally of common sense and usually advocates for determinism; so far, its worldview, scientific outlook, and methodology have always occupied the mainstream position in society and academia.

With regard to all possible “existence” in the world, Aristotle established 10 categories [3]. Among them, each category is basic and irreducible. See

Table 1. “Ten Categories” discussed in Aristotle’s theory of categories.

Number	Category	Example
1	Physical entity (material)	Man, horse
2	Quantity (size, weight)	Two-foot long
3	Nature (feature)	White, grammatical
4	Relationship (quantity)	Twice, half
5	Location (geography)	In Lucion, in the market
6	Time	Yesterday, a year ago
7	Posture	Lying and sitting
8	Status	Wearing shoes and armor
9	Action on	Cutting and burning
10	Be acted upon	To be cut and burned

below.

Aristotle is a “category realist”. In Aristotle’s works, the most discussed categories are entity, quantity, and nature. He sometimes used the phrase “other defined categories” to pass other categories [4]. In particular, Aristotle discussed the priority of “entity”. No entity, no other attributes exist. Regarding the categories of entity, he also distinguished “the first entity” and “the second entity” [5].

We believe that it is necessary to discuss the “10 categories” of the existence of natural (and artificial) matter in Aristotle’s physicalism, as it provides the basis for natural sciences such as chemistry, biology, etc. Due to the development of natural science, technology, engineering, and products, its foundation has made outstanding contributions to the development and progress of society. However, the exaggeration of the philosophical and scientific significance of Aristotle’s physicalism completely rejected the abstract idea, reduced the human spirit and social culture to their “material carrier”, and tried to use the concepts, principles, and methods of physics to construct a full explanation, finally resulting in “physics envy” and “quantitative complex”, misleading the development of humanities and social sciences for hundreds of years, fully revealing its “weaknesses”. Once transcending the physical world, Aristotle’s physicalism is not only wrong but also completely reversed. Therefore contemporary information theory modifies and supplements it.

3. The “Attribute Theory” of “Information Science” and Its Universality

“Information” does not have the “ten categories” of material objects; instead, it has its own “twelve attributes” [6], as shown in

Table 2. Twelve “attributes” of “information”.

Number	Attribute	Example
1	Information entity: meaning, idea, thought	Point, line, area, right, obligation, good
2	Number of carriers: increasing with the time and the non-conservative	Dictionary is getting thicker and thicker from scratch
3	Information features: not “formulaic” but “procedural”.	There are sequences, selections, and cycles in the program
4	Information relationship: not quantitative relationship but “logical” relationship	Points forming a line; Concept, principle, and method
5	Information space: information entities almost occupy no space	In the brain, books, and the Internet
6	Information time: information is eternal and not bound by time	Euclidean geometry will always exist
7	Original production: disposable innovation, production	Karl Marx’s production of Capital is disposable
8	Reproduction: almost no cost and no energy consumption	Electronic document copy, paper document copy
9	Information storage: almost no space and geographical location	USB flash disk, optical disk, cloud disk, etc., in space and geographical location
10	Information transmission: via the Internet; does not require the instantaneous transmission of logistics network	Internet and smart phones
11	Information sharing: simultaneity, not heterochrony	A copy of Capital for global use
12	Information evolution: depicting the history of philosophy, science, and discipline with logic and procedures	History of philosophy, science, discipline, etc.

below. Attributes one–six of information objects are opposite to that for material objects. The seventh to twelfth attributes of information are not found in material objects. Therefore, information is not material but “immaterial”. The characteristics, properties, and evolution laws of information cannot be explained or interpreted by the concepts, principles, and methods of physics but need to be explained by the science of information phenomenon itself (that is, the concepts, principles, and methods of information science).

Next, we briefly explain these twelve attributes of information.

(1)

Information entity. Meaning, idea, and thought are “reality” and “entity”, although “information” cannot be located in time and space. For example, Party A and Party B made a “verbal” agreement on business during the dinner, which brought them to court due to interest disputes. The judge can only determine that A and B both are real; “Oral contract” is also “real” and “entity”! This is contrary to “category 1” of material.

(2)

Number of carriers. “Information” is the “meaning, idea, and thought” of the carrier; we cannot measure its physical space-time and weight, but we can measure the “carrier” of information. Information and information carriers are increasing with the time and are not conserved, which is contrary to “category 2” of material.

(3)

Information characteristics. Information has no physical, chemical, and biological characteristics and cannot be “quantitative” or “formulaic”. However, information can be “logical” and “procedural”. This is contrary to “category 3” of material.

(4)

Information relationship. There is no quantitative relationship between information and no comparative sizes between them, but there is a logical relationship between information. This is contrary to “category 4” of material.

(5)

Information space. Compared with physical entities, information entities hardly occupy space. This is contrary to “category 5” of material.

(6)

Information time. Material objects are ever-changing, and there will be birth and death. Once it is produced, information can never die out. Plato’s Republic, through “reproduction”, exists forever in time. The material movement is a function of time; however, the evolution of information (such as classical texts) is temporal by the interaction of interpretation and innovation, but it is affected and restricted by the natural and social environment. This is contrary to “category 6” of material.

(7)

Original production. The “innovation” and “production” of information products are disposable. For example, it is enough to have a copy of Marx’s Capital, which is available to all mankind. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. Although the creation of material products also emphasizes the rights of “first” inventors and discoverers, if the poor want the luxury cars and cruise ships of the rich, they must have the money to “copy” them.

(8)

Copy production. The replication of information products is almost cost-free; electronic document copying can be performed with a few mouse clicks. The generation of new information can be completely “consumptive”. Higher mathematics is established on the basis of elementary mathematics, but it does not prevent elementary mathematics from continuing to play its role. The accumulation and “explosive” growth of information wealth is a matter of time. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. The “reproduction” of physical products, such as rebuilding a car, a building, and so on, requires the consumption of time, cost, and raw materials. In the material world, there is a general shortage of energy and raw materials.

(9)

Information storage. Information storage requires little space. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. Factories that produce material products cannot produce if their sales are not smooth, their goods are overstocked, and their warehouses are full.

(10)

Information transmission. “Information” does not need to go through the “logistics network”, but it can be spread instantly on the “Internet”. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. Problems in the logistics network will not occur on the Internet.

(11)

Information sharing. “Information” sharing is simultaneous; physical products cannot be shared at the same time. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. Some physical products (such as food) cannot be shared at all, while others (such as cars) can only be shared at different times.

(12)

Information evolution. The evolution of information can be characterized by logic and procedures. The “history” of information evolution can be preserved, such as the history of human civilization, philosophy, science, discipline, and the “thought history” of an expert. There is no such feature in the 10 categories of material objects. The material object is in constant change, its “history” is gone, and we only see it in its current state. For example, experts can only estimate and “speculate” about the Big Bang and the original state of the earth.

4. Physical Science and Information Science Have Different Scientific Views and Methodologies

In the view of physical positivists, all scientific “objects” are material, there is nothing in the world except matter and the movement of matter, and it is mere “pseudoscience” to study subjects that cannot be located in time and space. However, in today’s information age, computers, the Internet, and smart phones have become necessities for almost everyone, and everyone has become producers, sellers, and consumers of “information”. “Information” has become the “center” and “main axis” of our life, study, and work. Everything is interconnected; big data and artificial intelligence have become the leading forms of socio-economic, military, political, and cultural development. “Material” has become the “carrier” and “means” of our dream, design, and practice. All natural science (material science) has become the basis and condition of information science. The existence of “information” has its own characteristics different from that of matter; the process of information has its own laws, and they differ from the material process. In this way, on the basis of “theoretical informatics”, a complete “information science” knowledge system with “information” as the object has been fully mature, and has become a leader in the current scientific trend, keeping pace with “natural science”.

If the scientific outlook and methodology of natural science is “material”, quantitative, and formulaic and its purpose is to describe the “laws of motion” of material objects, then the scientific outlook and methodology of information science is “information”, logical, and procedural, and its purpose is to describe the “laws of evolution” of information objects. In adapting to each natural science discipline, an information science discipline has been established; for example, physics and physical informatics, chemistry and chemical informatics, biology and bioinformatics, etc. Natural science is the abstraction (first-level, or physical level of abstraction) of natural phenomena, that is, “material objects” that we can see with the naked eye, while humanities is the re-abstraction (second-level or social level of abstraction) of social phenomena, that is, “abstract objects” (such as fairness and justice) that we cannot see with the naked eye but can see with the mind. We cannot discuss the “size”, “volume”, and “weight” of fairness and justice, as well as their “physical track”, “chemical form”, and “biological process”, but we can discuss their “meaning” and the logical relationship between them. Humanities and social sciences help form the “network of ideas”, a complete knowledge system which is composed of these concepts and defines them as “nodes”. Without humanities and social sciences, how do we think, express, discuss, and act about the Russia–Ukraine conflict, Sino US relations, China’s rise, personal depression, cyber violence, and information killers?

Natural science is the science that pursues “power”, while human science is the science that pursues “ideas”. Physical products and services must be disseminated and delivered through the “Internet of Things”, while information products and services can only be delivered through the “Internet”. Our “body” can travel to the United States in over 10 h by plane, while our “ideas” can be communicated to the United States with a mouse click. All material processes are recorded, expressed, supervised, managed, and controlled by information processes. The times have changed, and our way of study, production, and life have changed. A new “science” and “methodology” have emerged. Let us welcome and embrace the “new paradigm of information science”.