A global digital world ?
At the other extreme from the bits, we can consider a global digital universe. That is perhaps unrealistic, and more sensible to consider that there is a plurality of digital worlds, separated/connected by analog/physical regions...
It could be useful to
distinguish in it:
- a general memory, or general bit raster (the digital world itself)
- action and management rules and operators (GOS)
- ways of ensuring communication between beings...
For life, there is no such raster, and it uses the laws of matter to effect these functions. See architectures.
Globally, the digital universe iis necessarily auto referent. Parts refer to other parts. And some parts refer to themselves. (a map of addresses contains necessarily the address of the map ?). In a first analysis, probably, auto referent parts should be put aside.
GOS functions are, or may
be :
- general clocking ; that is not necessary ; processes could go asynchronous,
or synchronize without any global intervention (communication protocols)
- laws operations (and "enforcement"), security ; that could be
mainly local ; at the global level, ownership of territory is ensured by the
underlying matter ; the more digital the world, the more "soft" is
the assignment of locations as well a in underlying matter ;
- noise generation ; normally, it will not be properly assigned to a DU
processor ; but why not;
- communication between processors ; here also, roles may parted between matter
and more or less general processors
- controlling the operations of non autonomous beings ; that, de facto, is more
the task of local beings ;
- insure the reproduction of DU upon itself at each global cycle, if we retain
this kind of model ; this point is near to metaphysical.
(that role is played, basically (at start) by the physical basis)
GOS may be seen as the God of the general universe. It this case, it must front the paradoxes of
the creator, of the rational God of natural theology, and every self-referent
being.
We shall now use frequently the term "material" to mean the location and disposition of a being in DU, opposed to ifs "formal" features. When referring to the material universe of common sense, we shall call it "physical".
9.1. Dimensions
The number of dimensions in digital worlds has not here the radical implications which mark the physical universe. Digital beings are, at first sight, rather indifferent to dimensions. As well one dimension in all, as one dimension per bit. . Genome is one dimensional for its basic structures. 2D is of frequent use for chip design and for representations, because our vision is so structured. More exactly, it is frequently 2+, or 21/2, with the use of layers (chips, raftered images) or of compacted perspective for maps, for instance.
The dimensions are
important when being have relations between themselves, then must be defined :
- independence of subparts (orthogonality)
- difference in metrics.
Unless otherwise stated, any digital object, including the global world may be thought of as a one dimension bit string.
The space is indefinite, potentially infinite. Infinite may be called for by a loop without stop condition, but of course we never get there by a finite number of cycles.
Material distance may have some importance, if the communication time/delay depends on this distance.
There is no proper zero, anyway
9.2. Globalization
Digital objecs tend to connect between themselves. Globally all objects are more and more connected (Internet of the things), then constituting a sort of globa universe (the cloud).