Re: The current definition of "extropy"
T0Morrow@aol.com
Mon, 16 Dec 1996 15:31:14 -0500
I agree with Max that "extropy" does not readily admit precise measurement.
Even adopting Shannon's take on entropy will probably not help much, as
subsequent researchers have argued that the very definition of "information"
turns out to rely on subjective mental states--not objective, measurable
phenomena. And at any rate, as Max observed, "extropy" never aimed at
standing in for the more scientific notion of negentropy.
Certainly, the word merits scrutiny, and its definition may benefit from
refinement. But I expect that we will have quatifiable and objective
measures of "extropy" no soon than we do of "beauty" and "virtue". (The
observation by no means denigrates the utility of these words, of course.)
T.0. Morrow