Information Theory Overview

Comment: Some time ago, I became interested in information theory partly due to my career and mostly because I began seeing elements of the theory popping up everywhere in movies, theological commentaries, war fighting etc... I studied the theory off and on purchasing books, watching movies, reading essays, and in general where ever I caught a wisp of the theory.  The interesting thing about truth is that it is self-evident and reveals itself in nature. So I did not have to look far. Although, a curious thing about information is noise or that which is distracting, like a red herring and there is plenty of noise out there. Anyhow, the point in this post is an information theory overview.  I would like to share basic information theory and relate it to the world around us. I will be coming back to this post updating and refining with more citations.

Information Theory

Information theory is relatively new and is part of probability theory. Like the core disciplines of mathematics and the sciences, information theory has a physical origin with broad spectrum applications. The theory has captured the attention of researchers spawning hundreds of research papers since its inception during the late 1940's. This new discovery has generated interest in deeper research that involves biological systems, the genome, warfare, and many other topical arenas. Claude E. Shannon PhD is the father of generalized information theory as developed during 1948 and theorized:

If the receiver is influenced by information from the transmitter then reproducing the influencing information at the receiver is limited to a probabilistic outcome based on entropy. 

Figure 1: Mathematical Formulation of Entropy (H) in a system

There are several terms in the thesis statement that may be difficult to grasp and the mathematical formulation, Figure 1,  may be overwhelming to some people who wonder how is entropy and information linked.  Entropy is an operative concept behind diminishing returns or the rate at which a system dies, decays, or falls apart. Entropy operates under order as formulated in figure 1. Thus, the phenomena is not random.  Within the context of information theory, entropy is the minimum size of a message before a meaning or value is lost. The notion of a probabilistic outcomes involves multiple possible results in which each result has a degree of uncertainty or a possibility that the result may not occur. For example, a rolling of the dice is limited to only six possible outcomes or results. The probability of any one outcome occurring is 1 in 6. The uncertainty in rolling the dice is high being 5 to 6 that any specific outcome will not occur.  As for the mathematical formulation, I will just leave that for general knowledge of what it looks like.

The thesis is pointing towards a 'lossy' system and promotes a simplistic communication model, Figure 2.

Figure 2: Simple Information Theory Model

From the thesis, formula, and model more complex related theories and models spawn coupling information theory to biology, quantum physics, electronic communications, crowds, and many other topical subject matter.  All fall back on entropy or the smallest message before it looses its meaning. The big question is so what? We will explore the 'so what' in the next section.

Information Theory Around Us

Most people fail to realize that information theory impacts us on an everyday basis. Aspects of the theory appear in movies, underpin all biological sensory capabilities, and appear in information networks in many ways. Many people philosophize that human and natural existence is purely information based. Let us explore information theory as it is exposed to many people. Most people have some familiarity with the sciences at some level, movies,  and religion.  Let us begin with a survey the sciences.

Atom smashing experiments during the 1970's lead to the discovery that the universe has boundary limits. According to physicist such as Richard Feynman, the father of quantum computing, matter ceases to exist at 10^-32 meters. When matter ceases to exist so does space-time. Matter has dimensions and time's arrow spans dimensionality. When matter no longer exists neither does dimensionality and time is mutually inclusive. What remains are non-local waveforms or electromagnetic waves which are illustrated as strings that vibrate. The region where this occurs is the Planckian realm which is where matter is quantized or discrete having the qualities of a bit of information. Matter and energy are interchangeable based on the Theory of Relativity, Figure 3, and the wave-particle theory of light. Those vibrating waveforms in the Planckian realm slam together in a process of compactness that is not fully understood forming a particle having discrete size, weight, and possesses a positive (+),  neutral (0), or negative (-)  charge.   These particles then begin to assemble in a computational algorithmic manner based on the charge and tri-state logic into more complex particles from the sub-atomic into the physical realm. In the physical realm, complex molecules form such as DNA from which biological life emerges. 

Figure 3:  Theory of Relativity Formula
Energy = Mass x  (Speed of Light)²

The DNA is somewhat unique according to Microbiologist Dr. Matt Ridley. This is because not only did an computational information process arrive at the DNA molecule but injected into the DNA molecule are 4 bits of information ( G, C, A, and T ) which is used by nanites to endow biological life. Nanites are intelligent molecular machines that perform work and made out of amino acids and proteins. These molecular machines have claws, impellers, and other instruments. They communicate, travel, and perform work based on DNA informational instructions. The information process continues as even more information is applied against the DNA strand such as variation of timing, sequencing, and duration under which a gene fires. By varying the timing, sequencing, and duration of a firing gene  then specific features are managed on the life form under gestation.  Dr. Ridley quips the genome is not a blueprint for life but instead a pattern makers template having some sort of Genome Operating Device, a G.O.D (Ridley, 2003). The point here is that there is some sort of intelligent communication ongoing during the endowment of life and development of the natural universe. All of which are the outcome of computational processes and information.

During the 1960's extensive research was conducted into the operation of human biological sensory processes in relation to information theory.  The conclusion of this research determined that the sense of sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste undergoes an electro-chemical process in which information is encoded using Fourier Transforms into electrical waveforms. The base Fourier equations are somewhat ominous, Figure 4.

Figure 4: Fourier Transforms Equations

The equations are shown to see what they look like. Extensive mathematic philosophy and practical understanding of how these equation perform is necessary to appreciate these equations. In lay jargon, Fourier transforms encode and extract information embedded in a waveform.  These waveforms are constructed from the biological sensory devices; eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin. Once the information is encoded into a waveform the human brain stores information holographically.  Consider the operation of the eyes attached as part of the brain. The reason for two eyes is that they act symbiotically. One eye is a data source while the other eye acts as a reference source.  When the waveforms from these two sources collide then information is encoded in the constructive and destructive patterns that result. These patterns are then imprinted into the brain material to be recalled on demand as human's think in terms of images and not attributes. The human brain is capable of storing up to 6 terabytes of information. The eye has a curious tie to the quantum realm detecting a photon of light coincidental with the smallest instance of time, Planck's Time, which is of the order of 10^-43 second.  This leads to the concept of quantum reality or that human perception is limited to the boundaries of the natural universe.

The human experience is said to be a digital simulation and the universe is computationally organized.  This lends credence to the creative license of writers and authors who imagine story lines such as The Matrix, Timeline, The Lawn Mower Man and countless others. But the concept of information in the human experience goes even further into theologies.

Information Theory and The Theological Argument 

Theologies are belief systems and inclusive of godless belief systems such as atheism and agnosticism to mono-theistic and polytheistic systems. Theologies are also inclusive of belief systems that deify idols and objects such as Pantheism which deifies the mother Earth. Cosmologies and philosophies are generally treated as a theology as well since the adherent's behavior is the same as any theological adherent. Religion is the practice of theological doctrines.  All theologies and related religions are information based. That is all theologies possess defining information effecting actions among the believers and/or reactions among non-believers. Some theologies are well organized and others are left to individual expression but all are based on some sort of information or lack of information. Adherents of any specific theology or religion gather, learn, and discuss the merits of their theological doctrines by communicating in order to increase membership or believers. 

Under information theory the Judeo-Christian Bible demonstrates many interesting qualities. The Judeo-Christian Theology advances one of the most comprehensive of all the theologies detailing a narrative from before-the-foundations-of-time to the end-of-time. The narrative begins not with the creation of the universe but a war between good and evil. Michael, the ArchAngel, defeats the rebelling forces lead by Satan. In the meantime, the Judeo-Christian God was busy creating the natural universe and gathered the defeated rebels casting them into the universe like a bolt of lightning effectively trapping evil in the universe or world.  The Judeo-Christian God then turned his attention to the souls, the believers, whom he knew before the creation of time and breathed their souls into human embodiments on Earth. Those human embodiments were architected with an image as well. The purpose of this was to test their loyalty through trials and tribulations having had the war break out in heaven. Evil, trapped in the world, causes the fall of humans into rebellion and the Judeo-Christian God declares war on evil as an outcome. Christ shows the believers the way by communicating the narrow path home. This epic war between good and evil in the world is actually an information war. 

Information warfare, IW, is a broad field of warfare that leverages ambiguity, deceit, innuendo, doubt, and truth in order to dominate the battle space or more correctly space-time.  IW tactics often involve hostile jamming,  man-in-the-middle attacks, psychological operations, in order to diminish, deter, deflect, or degrade the will of the opposition to fight. 

Satan is labeled the great deceiver. The Judeo-Christian God is truth or virtue. Satan placed doubt in Eve's mind about what God really said causing her to rebel against God and bring Adam into her fallen condition. God declared war on evil; Gen 3:15.  The Bible was then inspired by the Holy Spirit and scribed by humans as a 'message' to humans prescribing the way back home.  In the Bible, humans were given a mission, The Great Commission, to spread knowledge and information about the message of Christ.  In the meantime, other theologies either already operative in the world or spawning were designed to confuse the Biblical message or to conduct hostile jamming of the Biblical message.  For example, the Koranic Surah 9:5 is counter to Matt 26:52. The Koranic Surah 112 is direct denial of John 3:16.  These conflicting messages between theologies are commonly referred to as noise in information theory and in IW this is called hostile jamming due to intent. 

In response to noise, the Bible has been designed to pre-empt hostile jamming by delivering the messages multiple ways and times. Thus, by having a high signal-to-noise ratio jamming attempts can be defeated. The more important the message the more ways and times the message is repeated.  The Bible tactically uses parables to encrypt messages that humans who have the Holy Spirit, the decryption key, in them can understand. The Bible also tactically makes use of language being written originally in Greek and Hebrew. Greek is very concise and cannot have mistaken translations. Hebrew makes use of the highest language compression ratio communicating messages both phonetically and pictographically.  Hence, the use of many ways and means of getting the message through is an IW tactic. 

Under the auspices of information warfare, the war can be fought and won solely on the basis of information without committing conventional ground forces to battle. However, the final epic battle in Christian Eschatology is fought and personally won by Christ who is the victor over all evil.  This becomes necessary because those human hearts are hardened and many humans become demonically possessed such that their ears do not hear and eyes do not see. Thus, all communications have failed.

Additional support for the information perspective is the Judeo-Christian God spoke the universe into existence or communicated information; Gen 1:3. This act of speaking a universe into existence was built perhaps in the informational manner discovered by science and is ongoing today. Perhaps the Genome Operating Device varying the information of timing, sequencing, and duration of firing genes is the Judeo-Christian God's hand in the universe.  What ever the theology, the underlying premise is informational. Humans then decide to act based on the information they have or understand.

In conclusion, information theory affects us everyday in our world views, sciences, and personal beliefs leading to actions. Information theory hovers around the notion of a lossy system in which meaning is lost due to noise, interference, natural decay, and provocative measures.  Creative works have leveraged information theory to advance ideological movements.  Even the human life form may very well be the result of pure information causing humans to rethink  theologies and established beliefs in a new light. 

References:

Knuth, D. (2001). Things a computer scientist rarely talks about. CSLI Publications: Stanford.

Moser, S. and Chen, P. (2012). A student's guide to coding and information theory. Cambridge University Press: United Kingdom.

Reza, F. (1994). Introduction to information theory. Dover Books: New York.

Ridley, M. (2003). Nature via Nurture. New York: Harper Collins Publishers.

Biblical Sequence of Events: End-to-End

Biblical Sequence of Events: End-to-End

By

James T. Bogden

The purpose of this post is to set the background for additional posts on America's heritage. I needed an overarching sequence of events in order to discern the purpose and foundations for many of the topics and issues in coming posts. This is the reasoning and process I used in order to develop the sequence.

While serving in the military, I had transitioned from aerospace into information technology then into a specialty function cell with the ever changing military. While in the specialty function cell, I was boots-on-ground in Iraq. Our function was to bring democracy to Iraqis.

There are several forms of democracy of which the two major forms are parliamentary and representative democracy. The United States form of Democracy is representative or a republic. Whereas, the European form of democracy is parliamentary which does not have a system of checks and balances.  Democracy in the root form of a Republic originated from the Judeo-Christian Bible and has been the basis for the United States Government with all the underpinnings Judeo-Christian based. Although, the form attempted in Iraq was Parliamentary Democracy.

Iraq is mostly Muslim and the form of government promoted in Islam is the Caliphate or dictatorship. In fact, Osama Bin Laden declared the intent to establish a Caliphate from Spain to Indonesia. Bin Laden was to be the Caliph seated in Baghdad awaiting the development of the Islamic eschatology.

With this focus on theologies and the ideological war Bin Laden was waging to establish himself as the dictator, I was thrust deep into theologies, cosmologies, and philosophies hearing every kind of version of belief. The US Military even made attempts at secularizing the war and the Navy was using the tagline a "force for good" without moral clarity of the good for what or who.  This sounds more akin to Islam as Allah is greater. Greater than what or who? The Military failed to realize that secularism is a theology of its own as the US Supreme court has ruled in 1961, Torcaso vs Watkins,  that secular humanism, atheism, is a religion. The United States 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in 2005 that atheism is Constitutionally afforded treatment as a religious belief. Thus, these rulings based on the legal test provided extended to secularism as a whole.  The United States of America was founded as a Christian nation and on September 11, 2001 the United States was attacked for the cause of Islam and the propagation of their form of government.

Somehow, I had to discern the truth about Christianity, Islam, and others. While there is much more to this topic, I will focus only on the overarching Christian theology in this post. I will continue to refine this post and request that  you return for refinements or further clarification from time-to-time.

The Challenge

Over the years, I have listened to many understandings of the Bible and thoughts on the Christian religion or just religion in general. Most of the views came from a high degree of confidence in an unsupported personal belief rather than a logical and rational thought process based on evidence that can be reasonably followed. In this case scriptural evidence, the Bible. I learned upon investigation that most views were simply incorrect with fragments of the truth and very few seemed to be on target.  To me, the Christian religion was almost as though people were making it up and in many cases they were. Somewhere buried deep in all this was the accurate account from the Judeo-Christian God.  But first, I had to go through a process of learning the operative concepts and methods of accurate discernment. 

The universe, seemed to me, as order and structured filled with patterns, purpose, and meaning. C.S. Lewis viewed the universe as meaning drenched having layers of complexity upon complexity with God woven throughout the fabric of space-time.  Then as in common art, the universe should reflect something about its creator. Some religious circles call this the fingerprints of God.  I approached this problem of searching for the fingerprints as Leonardo Di Vinci would and applied the Di Vincian principle of 'sfumato' which is Italian for throwing everything up in smoke. Applying 'sfumato' countered the principle of condemnation without investigation or assuming that the truth was already known. This avoided incorrect foundations and misguided studies. I found on some occasions what I thought was true was not as a outcome of applying this principle.

Another principle employed was 'connessione' which is a realization of the interconnectedness of all things. In Biblical studies, the interconnectedness is considered taking into account the 'whole counsel of God'; Acts 20:27. God often explains things contextually but not always in the immediate surrounding text. The explanation could be a 1000 years later chronologically and in another book all together.  Applying the 'whole counsel of God' principle avoids dangling, unexplained, and/or tangential off shoots that do not seem to fit well into a symbiotic message and doctrine. The tools for this include a concordance, Bible Dictionaries, exegesis and/or commentaries from scholars and studied theologians alike.

There is also a concept of expositional constancy in which certain idioms, symbols, and associations carry the exact meaning where ever used.  For example, fire destroys, water cleanses, lamp stands are the churches, and the lamb is symbolic of Christ.

With these fundamental concepts and some others, I stepped back not one or two steps. In my minds eye, I stepped out of space-time all together to see creation, the universe, as best as I could from the Judeo-Christian God's perspective. What I learned was that most views were incorrect or incomplete. They accounted for time incorrectly, for example, by applying time to God who is both inside and outside of the time domain ubiquitously or applying time when God had not yet created it on the second 'day' of creation. What I saw was fascinating. 

Gaining Resolution

In the Bible, there are many ages and timelines of God's focus. Combining Biblical themes and events as well as secular world history for a complete timeline of history, the result is somewhat overwhelming. The Complete Biblical Timeline. If a serious Bible student, this can be helpful but my objective was to develop some sort of overarching timeline combined with event sequencing of a succinct theology; something a little more basic and had its message more clearly stated. There is the Biblical event sequence counting down to the Great Tribulation. There are ages or dispensations in which God's focus was on various aspects.  There is even a sequence of events for the maturity of the Church during the Church Age. None of these were complete of end-to-end explanation of the theology. Having this complete event sequence would illustrate the overall relationships and sequences of major events to the theme. This event sequence would reveal the overall account and purpose. After my research, I was able to discern the Pre-Millennial view which had the strongest support, Figure 1.

Figure 1: Pre-Millennial Threadline illustrating creation to the ascent as well as the dispensations. 

This is the high level theology. Unfortunately, many Christian religions often dispute the details but tend to agree on the overarching theme's focused on Christ. To sum up the Christianity in a classic elevator pitch one might remark as follows:

• A war broke out in heaven that resulted in evil being trapped in the World. The souls, Believers, were known before the foundations of time and were placed by God into embodiments within the world having their loyalty tested by evil before God reclaims the loyal ones and returns them home. The reclamation process involves the human recognizing their lost state and realizing the only way home is through acceptance of Jesus Christ who saves humans from a spiritual death. In the end, believers leave the current universe for a new one. The current universe is destroyed with the non-believers still in it having been raised from the dead in corporeal form and acknowledged God. 

The Biblical plot centers on Evil's attempts to distract, disrupt, deter, diminish, deny, and destroy human efforts from decoding the Biblical messages, becoming believers, and finding the narrow path home. Ultimately, evil seeks to thwart God's plan for each human. However, through faith in, acceptance, and a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, human believers are able to overcome evil's efforts and return home. Evil is defeated and there is security in salvation. 

A Deeper Look

There are generally two approaches to the Bible and some others such as systemic theology. One approach of Dispensationalism and the other of approach is Covenantalism.  Dispensationalism is a successive revelation of God involving stewardship and a rule of life.  Covenantalism centers on God's promises and his revealed eternal plan in the scriptures.  In practice, there is a combination of the two that work in a symbiotic relationship of revelation. There is only one revelation in the Bible and that is Jesus Christ who is the focus of the Book of Revelation (note the singularity of Revelation). The dispensational approach was used in this post as a temporal progression is illustrated as opposed to promises that required deeper insight and did not easily support a progression of time.  Systemic Theology is a system of systems approach and an integrated message system that maintains internal consistency of the whole.

Conclusion

Given the overarching timeline, study can begin on various points delving deeper with the connection to the entire counsel of God. As one studies a new area, new knowledge will become revealed connecting back to an earlier section studied. One may find themselves returning repeatedly to earlier sections for additional study. 

The knowledge of the theology is a good thing but the personal relationship with Christ is the most important for the believer's to have access to heaven and God in the Christian religion. 

References: ( There are considerably more references and I will adding them)

Cargal, T., Chavalas, M., Edwards, J., Gooch, J., Handy, L., Keener, C., Landry, D., Lintz, R., Lyons, G., Mason, J., Merling, D., Morris, G., Wright, J. (1982). The chronological study bible. Thomas Nelson Publishers; Nashville.

Cabal, T. (2003). The apologetic study bible. Holman Bible Publishers; South Korea.

Chaffer, L., Walwood, J. (1974). Major bible themes: 52 vital doctrines of the scripture simplified and explained. Zondervan Publishing House; Grand Rapids.

Randall, K. (2003). Holman illustrated bible dictionary: jerusalem.  Holman bible publishers. Nashville. pp 889-898.

(1993). King James Bible commentary. Thomas Nelson Publishers; Nashville.

(1996). Life Application Study Bible: king james version. Tyndale House Publishers, inc; wheaton.