Cybersemiotics - why information is not enough!

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Why information is not enough!

A Trans-Disciplinary Approach to Information, Cognition and Communication Studies, through an Integration of Niklas Luhmann’s Communication Theory with C. S. Peirce’s Semiotics.

What information, cognition, communication, intelligence and meaning are, is a very old philosophical problem. But today these questions, since Shannon’s information theory and Wiener’s cybernetics, are formulated in the trans-disciplinary context of computers, information systems, and ultimately the Internet demanding a framework encompassing the complex area of information, cognition and communication science. The current cognitive science information processing paradigm is criticized from a phenomenological and ethological point of view as being an insufficient foundation of information science because it lacks an evolutionary theory of embodied first person experience and signification.

As a constructive alternative is formulated a new trans-disciplinary framework (Cybersemiotics). This is based on an integration of a modernized version of Peirce’s semiotics in the form of biosemiotics, which is integrated with Luhmann’s communicational systems theory. elements from embodied cognitive semantics, ethology and language game theory are also used. The theory development is embedded in an ongoing philosophy of "science" reflection on the possibility of a non-reductionistic Transdisciplinarity. Opting for a transdisciplinary framework, after ALL postulates a sort of unity of sciences at a metalevel distinguishing the natural and social sciences as well has humanities from other symbolic generalized media such as politics, art and religion.

Cybersemiotic provides a framework contributing to information and knowledge management systems design as well as for a general theory of cognition and communication.

A long Danish and a shorter English summary can be read at cbs.dk.

Assessment Committee

Professor, Ole Fogh Kirkeby, CBS (Chairman)

Professor, Dick Baecker, Universität Witten/Herdecke

Professor, John Deely, University of St. Thomas, Houston

Official opponents

Professor, John Deely, University of St. Thomas, Houston

Professor, Dr.rer.soc. Dick Baecker, Universität Witten/Herdecke

Further information:

• Official invitation to doctoral defence

• Insights@CBS