EXOSOMATIC INFORMATION
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1215 ▶ |
| Object type | General information |
The information created and eventually retrieved by living systems in, and from their environment.
This concept has been developed by S. GOONATILAKE (1992, p.83-117): “While almost all memories are internal in the brain of animals, external memory markers are sometimes used as cues for the internal functioning of the brain. Sometimes such ”memories“ are consciously created and externalized in the world outside the brain. Sometimes the external memories can be manipulated” (p.83).
The marking of territories by animals is already a form of exosomatic information. There is also a close relation with stigmergy. In human societies, exosomatic information became an “explosive” process. Men rely heavily on a growing number of non-biological external clues and devices to sustain their evermore complex organizations. Moreover, as noted by GOONATILAKE, exosomatic processes can now be manipulated and are even seemingly acquiring a kind of autonomous activity, through spontaneous self-organization, particularly in information networks (p.120).