English

Generative Mechanisms: The mechanisms that implement codes

Information Theory 2021-05-11 v1 math.IT

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to abstractly describe the notion of a generative mechanism that implements a code and to provide a number of examples including the DNA-RNA machinery that implements the genetic code, Chomsky's Principles & Parameters model of a child acquiring a specific grammar given `chunks' of linguistic experience (which play the role of the received code), and embryonic development where positional information in the developing embryo plays the role of the received code. A generative mechanism is distinguished from a selectionist mechanism that has heretofore played an important role in biological modeling (e.g., Darwinian evolution and the immune system).

Cite

@article{arxiv.2105.03907,
  title  = {Generative Mechanisms: The mechanisms that implement codes},
  author = {David Ellerman},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2105.03907},
  year   = {2021}
}

Comments

arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1410.4501

R2 v1 2026-06-24T01:54:57.879Z