Issue 307: Harmonization of measurement

Posted by Martin on 24/11/2016

Dear All,

After consultation with Achille and Thanasi, here my proposed scope note for E16. The idea is to introduce S4 Observation and Observable Entity into CRM proper.

Old Scope note:

E16 Measurement

Subclass of:          E13 Attribute Assignment

Scope note:         This class comprises actions measuring physical properties and other values that can be determined by a systematic procedure.

Examples include measuring the monetary value of a collection of coins or the running time of a specific video cassette.

The E16 Measurement may use simple counting or tools, such as yardsticks or radiation detection devices. The interest is in the method and care applied, so that the reliability of the result may be judged at a later stage, or research continued on the associated documents. The date of the event is important for dimensions, which may change value over time, such as the length of an object subject to shrinkage. Details of methods and devices are best handled as free text, whereas basic techniques such as "carbon 14 dating" should be encoded using P2 has type (is type of:) E55 Type.

Examples:

§   measurement of height of silver cup 232 on the 31st  August 1997

§   the carbon 14 dating of the “Schoeninger Speer II” in 1996 [an about 400.000 years old Palaeolithic complete wooden spear found in Schoeningen, Niedersachsen, Germany in 1995]

In First Order Logic:

                              E16(x) ⊃ E13(x)

Properties:

P39 measured (was measured by): E1 CRM Entity

P40 observed dimension (was observed in): E54 Dimension

New Scope Note:
E16 Measurement

Subclass of:          E13 Attribute Assignment

Scope note:         This class comprises actions measuring quantitative physical properties and other values that can be determined by a systematic, objective procedure of immediate observation of particular states of physical reality. Properties of instances of E90 Symbolic Object may be measured via observing some of their representative carriers.

Examples include measuring the nominal monetary value of a collection of coins or the running time of a movie on a specific video cassette.

The E16 Measurement may use simple counting or tools, such as yardsticks or radiation detection devices. The interest is in the method and care applied, so that the reliability of the result may be judged at a later stage, or research continued on the associated documents. The date of the event is important for dimensions, which may change value over time, such as the length of an object subject to shrinkage. Methods  and devices employed should be associated with instances of E16 Measurement by properties such as P33 used specific technique,  P125 used object of type, P16 used specific object, whereas basic techniques such as "carbon 14 dating" should be encoded using P2 has type (is type of:) E55 Type. Details of methods and devices reused or reusable in other instances of E16 Measurement should be documented for these entities rather than the measurements themselves, whereas details of particular execution may be documented by free text or by instantiating adequate subactivities, if the detail may be of interest for an overarching query.

Regardless whether a measurement is made by an instrument or by human senses, it represents the initial transition from physical reality to information without any other documented information object in between in the reasoning chain that would represent the result of the interaction of the observer or device with reality. Therefore, inferring properties of depicted items using image material, such as satellite images, is not regarded as instance of E16 Measurement, but as another form of subsequent attribute assignment. Rather, the production of the images themselves is regarded as instance of E16 Measurement. The same reasoning holds for other sensor data.

Examples:

§   measurement of height of silver cup 232 on the 31st  August 1997

§   the carbon 14 dating of the “Schoeninger Speer II” in 1996 [an about 400.000 years old Palaeolithic complete wooden spear found in Schoeningen, Niedersachsen, Germany in 1995]

In First Order Logic:

                              E16(x) ⊃ E13(x)

Properties:

P39 measured (was measured by): E1 CRM Entity

P40 observed dimension (was observed in): E54 Dimension

posted by Simon Spero on 8/12/2016

[My in-house philosopher of science is currently zoned out under a cat]

There are a lot of theoretical issues involved in the ontological status of observations / observation reports / observation sentences, etc. See e.g. [1].

Directly observable can be a loaded term ; my cat-laden reference source notes the term is used by different philosophers to mean the kind of observations that their school of thought thinks is particularly good.

Immediate might also be problematic, as it may taken as meaning unaided (e.g. no telescopes).

Simon

postedby Martin on 8/12/2016

Dear Simon,

Thank you, nice reference indeed!

Your comment shows me that it is useless to describe what we mean in philosophically unambiguous adjectives. I prefer to use an intuitive interpretation. Otherwise, each CRM definition becomes a treatise in philosophy, provoking even more concerns. My concern and point of
view of observation has nothing to do with the question if we can truely observe objects or not ("close enough to the thing"), but if the method can be repeated and results be compared as long as the environment is sufficiently stable.

I tend to regard the whole discussion about the ability or inability to perceive the "things behind the sensory impressions" or if they are "real" in whatever sense or not as useless from a practical point of view (intellectually fascinating nevertheless!). I'd say science is about the ability to predict, and history is about possible pasts in terms of the same entities we successfully use to predict, including our own bodily presence. In the CRM we are concerned with these entities, as long as we can assign intersubjectively verifiable identities and diachronical stability to them, regardless theories about  realities. CRM is about reliable communication consistent with known constraints imposed by reality as we know it.

I wrote:
"Regardless whether a measurement is made by an instrument or by human senses, it represents the initial transition from physical reality to information without any other documented information object in between in the reasoning chain that would represent the result of the interaction of the observer or device with reality."

If this leaves any ambiguity about what I mean by immediate, it is worthwhile to consider other terms. Practically, it means that the physicist evaluates a bubble chamber photo, and does not observe the electron. If two scientists see the same electron path in the bubble chamber
without a photo, it's a nice personal experience but irrelevant for our applications.

Opinions?