All Topics  
Conceptual system

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Conceptual system
 
 
  Topics Conceptual system Topic Home

A conceptual system is a system that is comprised of non-physical
Physical system

In physics the word system has a technical meaning, namely, it is the portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis. Everything outside the system is known as the environment, which in analysis is ignored except for its effects on the system....
 object
Object (philosophy)

In philosophy, an object is a thing, an entity, or a being. This may be taken in several senses.In its weakest sense, the word object is the most all-purpose of nouns, and can replace a noun in any sentence at all....
s, i.e. ideas or concepts. In this context a system
System

System is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole.The concept of an "integrated whole" can also be stated in terms of a system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other elements, and from relationships between an element of the se...
 is taken to mean "an interrelated, interworking set of objects".

nceptual system is simply a model
Model

A model is a pattern, plan, representation , or description designed to show the main object or workings of an object, system, or concept. Model may also refer to:...
. There are no limitations on this kind of model whatsoever except those of human imagination
Imagination

Imagination is the faculty of imagining, or of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses, and the action or process of forming such images or concepts....
. If there is an experimentally verified correspondence between a conceptual system and a physical system
Physical system

In physics the word system has a technical meaning, namely, it is the portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis. Everything outside the system is known as the environment, which in analysis is ignored except for its effects on the system....
 then that conceptual system models the physical system.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Conceptual system'
Start a new discussion about 'Conceptual system'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


A conceptual system is a system that is comprised of non-physical
Physical system

In physics the word system has a technical meaning, namely, it is the portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis. Everything outside the system is known as the environment, which in analysis is ignored except for its effects on the system....
 object
Object (philosophy)

In philosophy, an object is a thing, an entity, or a being. This may be taken in several senses.In its weakest sense, the word object is the most all-purpose of nouns, and can replace a noun in any sentence at all....
s, i.e. ideas or concepts. In this context a system
System

System is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole.The concept of an "integrated whole" can also be stated in terms of a system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other elements, and from relationships between an element of the se...
 is taken to mean "an interrelated, interworking set of objects".

Overview

A conceptual system is simply a model
Model

A model is a pattern, plan, representation , or description designed to show the main object or workings of an object, system, or concept. Model may also refer to:...
. There are no limitations on this kind of model whatsoever except those of human imagination
Imagination

Imagination is the faculty of imagining, or of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses, and the action or process of forming such images or concepts....
. If there is an experimentally verified correspondence between a conceptual system and a physical system
Physical system

In physics the word system has a technical meaning, namely, it is the portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis. Everything outside the system is known as the environment, which in analysis is ignored except for its effects on the system....
 then that conceptual system models the physical system. "values, ideas, and beliefs that make up every persons view of the world": that is a model of the world; a conceptual system that is a model of a physical system (the world). The person who has that model is a physical system.

In psychology
Psychology

Psychology is an academic and applied science discipline involving the science study of human mental functions and behavior. Occasionally it also relies on symbolic hermeneutics and critical theory, although these traditions are less pronounced than in other social sciences such as sociology....
 and social work
Social work

Social work is a discipline involving the application of social theory and research methods to study and improve the lives of people, groups, and societies....
, when they talk about a conceptual system, they are referring to some person's model of the world, but if they try to understand that model, they end up making a model of that model, which is just a model of the person's behavior. In any case, this is exactly the purpose of the general term "conceptual systems".

Basics

The basis of all this is simple: the notion that something exists demands that the thing that exists be addressable. That is to say that there must be some observable
Observable

In physics, particularly in quantum physics, a system observable is a property of the State that can be determined by some sequence of physical operational definition....
 or conceivable manifestation
Manifestation

Manifestation may refer to any one of the following:*The Manifestation of God, which are the prophets of the Bah?'? Faith.*The Law of Attraction is a New Age thought that people can manifest reality using thoughts....
 of the thing that is said to exist. If the manifestation is observable then the thing is a physical system (or object, it doesn't matter which for physical systems until you get down to indivisible particles). If the thing is not observable but is conceivable its a conceptual system.

More precisely: consider the set of all system
System

System is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole.The concept of an "integrated whole" can also be stated in terms of a system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other elements, and from relationships between an element of the se...
s. Implicitly, the set of all objects is a subset of the set of all systems because a systems in an interacting structure of sub-systems and/or objects. The set of all conceptual and the set of all physical systems are both subsets of this set. For higher precision, one may first consider the set of all valid properties, then allow every system to be defined as a binary string which encodes the truth value of every property applied to that object or system. In that way uniqueness is guaranteed and the system is paradox free (due to filtering the set of properties first).

In general the set of all conceptual systems is infinite. But it may be built up as a finite structure like a dictionary, only including the conceptual systems that are known, and adding new ones as they arise. Given the boardness of 'conceptual systems', the set of all conceptual systems would be uncountably infinite because every real number is a conceptual object.

Examples

Examples of conceptual systems are:
  • Entity-relationship model
    Entity-relationship model

    An Entity-Relationship Model in software engineering is an abstract and conceptual representation of data. Entity-relationship modeling is a relational schema database modeling method, used to produce a type of conceptual schema or semantic data model of a system, often a relational database, and its requirements in a top-down fashion....
  • Object-oriented programming
    Object-oriented programming

    Object-oriented programming is a programming paradigm that uses "Object_" and their interactions to design applications and computer programs....
    : allows conceptual systems to be defined in a robust manner.
  • Metalogic
    Metalogic

    Metalogic is the study of the metatheory of logic. While logic is the study of the manner in which logical systems can be used to decide the correctness of arguments, metalogic studies the properties of the logical systems themselves....
  • Unified Modeling Language
    Unified Modeling Language

    Unified Modeling Language is a standardized general-purpose modeling language in the field of software engineering.UML includes a set of graphical notation techniques to create abstract models of specific systems....


Related topics


Concept

A concept is an abstract
Abstraction

Abstraction is the process or result of generalization by reducing the information content of a concept or an observable phenomenon, typically in order to retain only information which is relevant for a particular purpose....
 idea
Idea

An idea is a form formed by consciousness through the process of Ideation . Human capability to contemplate ideas is associated with the ability of reasoning, human self-reflection, and of the ability to acquire and apply intellect, intuition, inspiration, etc.....
 or a mental symbol, typically associated with a corresponding representation in and language
Language

A language is a form of symbol communication in which elements are combined to represents something other than themselves. Language can also refer to the use of such systems as a general phenomenon....
 or symbology
Symbology

Also known as processual symbolic analysis, symbology was developed by Victor Turner in the mid-1970s to refer to the use of symbols within cultural contexts, in particular ritual....
, that denotes all of the objects in a given category
Categories (Aristotle)

Categories is a text from Aristotle's Organon that enumerates all the possible kinds of thing which can be the subject or the Predicate of a proposition....
 or class
Class (philosophy)

Philosophers sometimes distinguish classes from type and natural kind. We can talk about the class of human beings, just as we can talk about the type , human being, or humanity....
 of entities, interaction
Interaction

Interaction is a kind of action that occurs as two or more objects have an effect upon one another. The idea of a two-way effect is essential in the concept of interaction, as opposed to a one-way causal effect....
s, phenomena, or relationships between them. Concepts are abstract in that they omit the difference
Difference

Difference is the Antonym of equality , in particular of objects. Differences can only be stated on the basis of a...
s of the things in their extension
Extension (semantics)

In any of several studies that treat the use of sign s, for example in linguistics, logic, mathematics, semantics, and semiotics, the extension of a concept, idea, or sign consists of the things to which it applies, in contrast with its comprehension or intension, which consists very roughly of the ideas, properties, or corresponding signs...
, treating them as if they were identical. They are universal in that they apply equally to every thing in their extension. Concepts are also the basic elements of proposition
Proposition

This article is about the term proposition in logic and philosophy; for other uses see PropositionIn logic and philosophy, proposition refers to either the "content" or Meaning of a meaningful declarative sentence or the pattern of symbols, marks, or sounds that make up a meaningful declarative sentence....
s, much the same way a word
Word

A word is a unit of language that represents a concept which can be expressively communication with Meaning . A word consists of one or more morphemes which are linked more or less tightly together, and has a phonetic value....
 is the basic semantic
Semantics

Semantics is the study of meaning in communication. The word is derived from the Greek language word s??a?t???? , "significant", from s??a??? , "to signify, to indicate" and that from s??a , "sign, mark, token"....
 element of a sentence
Sentence (linguistics)

In linguistics, a sentence is a grammatical unit of one or more words, bearing minimal syntactic relation to the words that precede or follow it, often preceded and followed in speech by pauses, having one of a small number of characteristic intonation patterns, and typically expressing an independent statement, question, request, command, et...
. Unlike perception
Perception

In psychology and the cognitive sciences, perception is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sense information. It is a task far more complex than was imagined in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was predicted that building perceiving machines would take about a decade, a goal which is still very far from fruition....
s, which are particular images of individual objects, concepts cannot be visualized. Because they are not, themselves, individual perceptions, concepts are discursive and result from reason
Reason

Reason may refer to Mind#Mental faculties that consciously create explanations in order to judge, decide, solve problems, generalize, and give examples, among other activities....
. They can only be thought about, or designated, by means of a name
Name

A name is a label for a noun, , normally used to distinguish one from another. Names can identify a class or Category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given wiktionary:context....
. Words are not concepts. Words are signs for concepts.

Conceptual schema

A conceptual model is a representation of some phenomenon, data or theory by logical and mathematical objects such as function
Function (mathematics)

The mathematical concept of a function expresses dependence between two quantities, one of which is known and the other which is produced. A function associates a single output to each input element drawn from a fixed Set , such as the real numbers , although different inputs may have the same output....
s, relation
Relation (mathematics)

In mathematics , a relation is a property that assigns truth values to combinations of k first-order logic. Typically, the property describes a possible connection between the components of a k-tuple....
s, tables, stochastic process
Stochastic process

A stochastic process, or sometimes random process, is the counterpart to a deterministic process in probability theory. Instead of dealing with only one possible 'reality' of how the process might evolve under time , in a stochastic or random process there is some indeterminacy in its future evolution described by probability distribu...
es, formulas, axiom systems, rules of inference etc. A conceptual model has an ontology
Ontology

Ontology in philosophy is the study of the nature of being, existence or reality in general, as well as of the basic category of being and their relations....
, that is the set of expressions in the model which are intended to denote some aspect of the modeled object. Here we are deliberately vague as to how expressions are constructed in a model and particularly what the logical structure of formulas in a model actually is. In fact, we have made no assumption that models are encoded in any formal logical system at all, although we briefly address this issue below. Moreover, the definition given here is oblivious about whether two expressions really should denote the same thing. Note that this notion of ontology is different from (and weaker than) ontology as is sometimes understood in philosophy; in our sense there is no claim that the expressions actually denote anything which exists physically or spatio-temporally (to use W. Quine's formulation).

For example, a stochastic model of stock prices includes in its ontology a sample space, random variables, the mean and variance of stock prices, various regression coefficients etc. Models of quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics

Quantum mechanics is a set of principles underlying the most fundamental known description of all physical systems at the microscopic scale . Notable amongst these principles are both a dual wave-like and particle-like behavior of matter and radiation, and prediction of probabilities in situations where classical physics predicts certaintie...
 in which pure states are represented as unit vectors in a Hilbert space include in their ontologies observable
Observable

In physics, particularly in quantum physics, a system observable is a property of the State that can be determined by some sequence of physical operational definition....
s, dynamics
Dynamics (mechanics)

In physics the term dynamics customarily refers to the time evolution of physical processes. These processes may be microscopic as in particle physics, kinetic theory, and chemical reactions, or macroscopic as in the predictions of statistical mechanics and nonequilibrium thermodynamics....
, measurement
Measurement

Measurement is the process of assigning a number to an attribute according to a rule or set of rules. The term can also be used to refer to the result obtained after performing the process....
 operators etc. It is possible that observables and states of quantum mechanics are as physically real as the electrons they model, but by adopting this purely formal notion of ontology we avoid altogether this question.

Conceptual framework

A conceptual framework is used in research to outline possible courses of action or to present a preferred approach to a system analysis
System analysis

System analysis is the branch of electrical engineering that characterizes electrical systems and their properties. Although many of the methods of system analysis can be applied to non-electrical systems, it is a subject often studied by electrical engineers because it has direct relevance to many other areas of their discipline, most notab...
 project. The framework
Framework

A framework is a basic conceptual structure used to solve or address complex issues. This very broad definition has allowed the term to be used as a buzzword, especially in a software context....
 is built from a set
Set

A set is a collection of distinct objects, considered as an object in its own right. Sets are one of the most fundamental concepts in mathematics....
 of concept
Concept

A concept is a cognition unit of meaning— an abstraction idea or a mental symbol sometimes defined as a "unit of knowledge," built from other units which act as a concept's characteristics....
s linked to a planned or existing system
System

System is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole.The concept of an "integrated whole" can also be stated in terms of a system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other elements, and from relationships between an element of the se...
 of methods, behavior
Behavior

Behavior or behaviour refers to the action s or reactions of an object or organism, usually in Relational theory to the environment. Behavior can be conscious or Unconscious mind, overt or covert, and voluntary or involuntary....
s, functions, relationships, and object
Object (philosophy)

In philosophy, an object is a thing, an entity, or a being. This may be taken in several senses.In its weakest sense, the word object is the most all-purpose of nouns, and can replace a noun in any sentence at all....
s. A conceptual framework might, in computing terms, be thought of as a relational model
Relational model

The relational model for database management is a database model based on first-order logic, first formulated and proposed in 1969 by Edgar F. Codd....
.

For example a conceptual framework of accounting "seeks to identify the nature, subject, purpose and broad content of general-purpose financial reporting and the qualitative characteristics that financial information should possess".

See also

  • Closed system
    Closed system

    A closed system is a system in the state of being isolated from its surrounding. It is often used to refer to a theoretical system where perfect closure is an assumption, however in practice no system can be completely closed; there are only varying degrees of closure....
  • Concept
    Concept

    A concept is a cognition unit of meaning— an abstraction idea or a mental symbol sometimes defined as a "unit of knowledge," built from other units which act as a concept's characteristics....
  • Concept and object
    Concept and object

    In the philosophy of language, the distinction between concept and object is due to the German philosopher Gottlob Frege.fr:Concept et objetAccording to Frege, any sentence that expresses a singular proposition consists of an expression that signifies an Object together with a predicate that signifies a Concept....
  • Concept learning
    Concept learning

    Concept learning, also known as category learning and concept attainment, is largely based on the works of the cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner....
  • Concept map
    Concept map

    A concept map is a diagram showing the relationships among concepts. They are graphical tools for organizing and representing knowledge. They include concepts, usually enclosed in circles or boxes of some type, and relationships between concepts indicated by a connecting line linking two concepts....
  • Conceptual art
    Conceptual art

    Conceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional Aesthetics and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called Installation art, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions....
  • Conceptual blending
    Conceptual blending

    Conceptual Blending is a general theory of cognition. According to this theory, elements and vital relations from diverse scenarios are "blended" in a subconscious process known as Conceptual Blending, which is assumed to be ubiquitous to everyday thought and language....
  • Conceptual clustering
    Conceptual clustering

    Conceptual clustering is a machine learning paradigm for unsupervised classification developed mainly during the 1980s. It is distinguished from ordinary data clustering by generating a concept description for each generated class....
  • Conceptual framework
    Conceptual framework

    A conceptual framework is used in research to outline possible courses of action or to present a preferred approach to an idea or thought....
  • Conceptual object
  • Conceptual schema
    Conceptual schema

    A conceptual schema or conceptual data model is a map of concepts and their relationships. This describes the semantics of an organization and represents a series of Logical assertions about its nature....
  • Formal concept analysis
    Formal concept analysis

    Formal concept analysis is a principled way of automatically deriving an Ontology from a collection of objects and their properties. The term was introduced by Rudolf Wille in 1984, and builds on applied lattice theory and order theory that was developed by Garrett Birkhoff and others in the 1930's....
  • Metaphysics
    Metaphysics

    Metaphysics investigates principles of reality transcending those of any particular science. cosmology and ontology are traditional branches of metaphysics....
  • Meta system
  • Open system
    Open system

    Open system may refer to:*Open system , one of a class of computers and associated software that provides some combination of interoperability, portability and open software standards, particularly Unix and Unix-like systems...
  • Physical system
    Physical system

    In physics the word system has a technical meaning, namely, it is the portion of the physical universe chosen for analysis. Everything outside the system is known as the environment, which in analysis is ignored except for its effects on the system....
  • Physical object
  • Simulated reality
    Simulated reality

    Simulated reality is the proposition that reality could be simulated?perhaps by computer simulation?to a degree indistinguishable from "true" reality....
  • Virtual reality
    Virtual reality

    Virtual reality is a technology which allows a user to interact with a computer-simulated environment, whether that environment is a simulation of the real world or an imaginary world....


Further reading

  • Lawrence W. Barsalou, "Continuity of the conceptual system across species", in: Trends in Cognitive Sciences, Vol 9, Iss 7, July 2005, Pp. 309-311.
  • Harold I. Brown (2006), , Routledge, UK, Dec 2006.
  • George Lakoff, "What is a Conceptual System?", in: Willis F. Overton & David Stuart Palermo eds., The Nature and Ontogenesis of Meaning, 1994.
  • Stuart A. Umpleby (1994), , Paper prepared for the Institute for Advanced Studies, Vienna, Austria.


External links

  • . at Berkeley.edu, 2007.