Ed, (01)
> The distinction I am making is in what the datum is. I argue that
> a datum is a proposition. A value without any interpretation is not
> a datum. It is a child without a meaning. (02)
That is a reasonable definition. I stated the etymology in my note:
"A datum is anything that is given." Somebody might give you a list
of values without telling you what they mean. (03)
JFS
>> I would also add that not all data is propositional. For example,
>> the list of names and numbers in a telephone book consists of paired
>> instances of two kinds of data. Each pair becomes a proposition
>> when the instances are inserted in an appropriate schema:
>>
>> "The person named _________ has the telephone number ________." (04)
EB
> I disagree. That is, the meaning of each pair in the telephone
> directory is a proposition of that form, and the pair is a datum. It is
> not necessary to express the sentence per se. (05)
A telephone book gives us a list of paired values. The intended
propositions are derived by combining the values with some relations. (06)
Instead of quibbling about some email note(s), I suggest that we
classify the kinds of data: (07)
1. Explicit statements of propositions in some language. (08)
2. Values (names, numerals, strings, etc.) in some kind of
structures (tables, lists, graphs) together with some
schema (implicit or explicit) for interpreting the
structures of values as propositions. (09)
3. Values that have become detached from their explanations and
present a puzzle to be solved before they can be interpreted
as propositions. (010)
4. Etc. (011)
John (012)
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