I’m not convinced there’s an actual distinction to be made here.
Using your mass comparison example, arguably the only meaningful different between the two is where information is stored. In search-in-map it’s stored in an auxiliary system; in search-in-territory it’s embedded in the system. The same information is still there, though, all that’s changed is the mechanism, and I’m not sure map and territory is the right way to talk about this since both are embedded/embodied in actual systems.
My guess is that search-in-map looks like a thing apart from search-in-territory because of perceived dualism. You give the example of counterfactuals being in the map rather than the territory, but the map is itself still in the territory (as I’m sure you know), so there’s no clear sense in which counterfactuals and the models that enable them are not physical processes. Yes, we can apply an abstraction to temporarily ignore the physical process, which is maybe what you mean to get at, but it’s still a physical process all the same.
It seems to me maybe the interesting thing is whether you can talk about a search algorithm in terms of particular kinds of abstractions rather than anything else, which if you go far enough around comes back to your position, but with more explained.
It seems to me maybe the interesting thing is whether you can talk about a search algorithm in terms of particular kinds of abstractions rather than anything else, which if you go far enough around comes back to your position, but with more explained.
I’m not convinced there’s an actual distinction to be made here.
Using your mass comparison example, arguably the only meaningful different between the two is where information is stored. In search-in-map it’s stored in an auxiliary system; in search-in-territory it’s embedded in the system. The same information is still there, though, all that’s changed is the mechanism, and I’m not sure map and territory is the right way to talk about this since both are embedded/embodied in actual systems.
My guess is that search-in-map looks like a thing apart from search-in-territory because of perceived dualism. You give the example of counterfactuals being in the map rather than the territory, but the map is itself still in the territory (as I’m sure you know), so there’s no clear sense in which counterfactuals and the models that enable them are not physical processes. Yes, we can apply an abstraction to temporarily ignore the physical process, which is maybe what you mean to get at, but it’s still a physical process all the same.
It seems to me maybe the interesting thing is whether you can talk about a search algorithm in terms of particular kinds of abstractions rather than anything else, which if you go far enough around comes back to your position, but with more explained.
+1