Re: Non-linear full-2d writing (again)

Sai Emrys wrote:
> On 1/28/06, Jefferson Wilson <jeffwilson63@...> wrote:
>>Sai Emrys wrote:
>>>On 1/25/06, Yahya Abdal-Aziz <yahya@...> wrote:
>>>
>>>>1.  Thanks for trying to explain your notion of "non-linear", and how it
>>>>differs from simply "not presented along a straight line".  If I might
>>>>summarise, I think your meaning of "non-linear" is what I would call
>>>>"non-sequential".  So we're really talking about basic internal structure
>>>>here, rather than (primarily) about representation.
>>>
>>>Two good tests are branching factor and recursivity. If it can't to
>>>both to arbitrary degrees, it's not what I'm talking about.
>>
>>What do you mean by "arbitrary degree?"  If all symbols are the
>>same size you're more-or-less restricted to six branches from a
>>single symbol.
>
> Only if they're also all square AND not allowed to overlap (or 'fill'
> a square space, like all 'ideographic' languages I know do - e.g.
> Japanese / Chinese kanji/hanzi always "take up" one square of space,
> no matter what they do within it).
Uh, no.  It doesn't matter whether they're square or allowed to
overlap or change in size.  Two-dimensional space-filling permits
only six connections, and if you aren't talking about same-size
space-filling then your connections aren't arbitrary in the first
place.

> If you have different shape of their 'personal space' - e.g. hexagonal
> (viz. maps used for wargames) - or if they have allowance for some
> sort of fusional morphology, then I see no reason why it cannot in
> fact be literally to any arbitrary degree of branching / recursion.
You've failed to define what you mean by "arbitrary degree of
branching."  Mathematically, space-filling two-dimensional
arrangements are limited to six connections.  Even if there's a
higher order of symmetry (7-fold or eight-fold) there can still
be only six or fewer local connections.  Greater connectivity can
be defined, but if it's defined it can't (by definition) be
arbitrary.

--
Jefferson
http://www.picotech.net/~jeff_wilson63/myths/

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