Pictorial Representations

Abstract

Suppose that we decide to include information in our messages to ETI in the form of pictures of various kinds. When choosing coding procedures, the designers of messages containing (digitised) pictorial information should keep an open mind for the serious decoding problem at the receiver’s end—but we shall not be concerned especially with this aspect in the present chapter. Instead we address the question of what kind of information in connection with pictures one might select and choose to transmit. Once that has been decided, new LINCOS comes into play: pictures need formal annotations explaining the contents of the story told. At first sight this seems to imply restrictions on the kind of pictures to be considered. That is indeed the case, but even more important is the requirement that the story should possess “tangible” logic contents.