Cognitive Vocabularium. Shortest definitions.

“My definitions are good at least because they can be ignored!”

❗ Disclaimer: all definitions are just my own.

👉 Consciousness is perception with understanding
Consciousness is a meaningful perception
👉 Understanding is comprehending the meaning
👉 Attention is a form of selective perception
As well as touch, smell, hearing. And even consideration can be called a form of perception of the object of consideration
👉 Meaning is a representation of any kind (for example, awareness or description, including formula, algorithm, program code) of a single act of relationships.
Elementary meaning is a perception of some relationship between real or virtual entities
👉 A relation is an interaction or connection of any kind between elements of a set, real or virtual objects
👉 Existence is the belonging of an element/entity to a set/environment
• Existence is relative (subjective), not absolute. If you don’t perceive something, it doesn’t exist for you, regardless of whether it exists in the physical world. And vice versa.
• This definition is recursive. Fabulous dragons exist exactly as much as there is a set to which they belong, in this case, “fabulous animals”. Since the set of “fabulous animals” does not exist in the real physical world, then dragons do not exist for the real physical world. But they exist for the set of “fabulous animals”. Also, dragons exist for the set of “Komodo Island animals”. Since the set of “Komodo Island animals” exist in the real physical world, then such dragons also exist in the real physical world. Tomorrow it may turn out that flying dragons have been preserved somewhere near Mount Fuji. And fabulous flying dragons will begin to exist in the real physical world.
• The number π exists only for those who perceive the set (domain of definition) on which it exists and for those who can distinguish the number π on this set. But in the “physical world” the number π does not exist. √-1 does not exist on the real axis, but it does exist on the complex plane. And the result of some operation with this value can exist as a real number. The one who perceives only the real axis sees only the real part of the complex number, i.e. its projection on the real axis.
• This definition applies to any entities, “real” or “virtual”.
👉 Intelligence is an operator of meanings
A subject operating with meanings, forming, creating meanings, i.e. determining (for oneself, since meanings are subjective) the existence of relations between elements of various sets, environmental objects or virtual entities
👉 Knowledge is a certain set / collection of meanings as a representation of any kind (for example, awareness or description, including formula, algorithm, program code) of a relationship as a whole or any subset thereof
Data is a source of knowledge. Intelligence is a processor generating knowledge from the data.
👉 Contingency is the variability of perception
Subjective perceptions of some object by subjects are variable, they always differ, but usually they always coincide in some way, since they are based on some subset of objective data available to subjects. Thus, contingency is variability, the possibility of a perceived object to be different, to differ from each specific representation. Such variability is the result of subjectivity of perception.
👉 Truth is what exists
And truthfulness is existence. Existent is true. Everything that is true exists. Knowledge is existing. Knowledge is true. The formation of meaning by the intelligence is the determination of truthfulness, i.e. the fact of existence.
👉 Qualia are details of individual perception of the world
Details, but not the actual perception of the world as a whole, since qualia is a set. This definition fits both the perception of the world when perceiving yellow color and the perception of complex events, for example, the sense of narrative as a complex of events and opinions. Qualia is actually data received from the surrounding world and stored in the brain in a non-verbal form. But, as we know, data and knowledge are not the same thing. It is necessary to be able to separate qualia obtained from the surrounding world and stored in some physiological form, and structured verbal and non-verbal knowledge formed on their basis.
👉 Animateness is conscious subjectness
Subjectness is a more general category than animateness. Subjectness includes animateness. Subjectness is determined by the presence of free will. Free will is the presence of alternatives + motivation.
Thus, animateness presupposes the presence of free will. And it does not exist without the possibility of choice and motivation.
👉 Ontology is metadata
The prerogative of the intellect, whether natural or artificial, is to create its own ontologies, interacting with the surrounding world (subject area) and determining its structure, individual for a given subject. The structure of the subject area is described by metadata representing knowledge (in the simple case, metadata is data about data, also representing a relation, i.e. knowledge). Where such a mechanism is present — there is intelligence. Where it is rigidly set from the outside, there is a software robot.
👉 Motivation is a conscious need for action
👉 Free will for Artificial intelligence is the freedom of the algorithm to choose a solution in the presence of alternatives, using either built-in motivation or a random selection method in the absence of it
Freedom in uncertainty. Freedom implies the presence of uncertainty, the presence of alternatives. Where everything is predetermined and there is no uncertainty, there is no freedom.
👉 Perception is a projection (result of interaction, realization of connection) of a relation onto an object (element(s) of a set)
The perception for the subject is a distinguishable part (projection) of a real or virtual world
👉 A datum is a representation of any kind (for example, a description or a machine view) of a single element of perception
👉 Any selection of datums forms data (dataset). Data are elements of perception stored in any form
👉 If the actions to achieve a certain state are completely clear and provided with resources, then this is a Task
👉 If the actions are completely clear and not provided with resources, then this is the Goal
👉 If the actions are not completely clear and not provided with resources, then this is a Dream
A goal devoid of uncertainty turns into a task.
A goal devoid of certainty turns into a dream.
👉 A “thing-in-itself” is something that exists outside of its perception
👉 A “phenomenon” is a subjective perception of a “thing-in-itself”
👉 A subject is an observer
The characteristic of subjectness — the ability to perceive. This completely defines subjectness. The ability to influence and behave independently and purposefully is secondary and is not decisive for the subject-observer, but it is decisive to determine its subjectness for any third-party subjects.
👉 An object is something perceived as a whole
👉 A system is an object with diversity
The “object” means that the system can somehow be isolated from the surrounding world through perception. “Diversity” means that the system has a perceived structure — attributes, behaviors, elements, etc

👆 See explanations and examples in my articles…