Laws of Form (B7782)

xxii, 134, [4] pp. A mathematical book which has inspired explorations in philosophy, cybernetics, art, spirituality, and computation. The work is powerful and has established a passionate following as well as harsh critics. Spencer-Brown referred to the mathematical system of Laws of Form as the "primary algebra" and the "calculus of indications"; others have termed it "boundary algebra". The primary algebra is essentially an elegant minimalist notation for the two-element Boolean algebra. Laws of Form has influenced, among others, Heinz von Foerster, Louis Kauffman, Niklas Luhmann, Humberto Maturana, Francisco Varela, Leon Conrad, and William Bricken. Some of these authors have modified and extended the primary algebra, with interesting consequences.