System Ontology

Theory

System Ontology

To navigate a complex system, we must agree on the names of things. This directory eliminates confusion and ambiguity by strictly defining our Shared Language within specific Boundaries.

Boundaries:

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The Epistemic Supply Chain

We treat language as cognitive infrastructure. This taxonomy maps the supply chain of meaning, tracking how ambiguous concepts evolve into the reliable semantic primitives that underpin our shared reality.

Just as raw materials evolve into products, vague Concepts evolve into standard Vocabulary. This evolution reduces cognitive load: we stop debating definitions and start building upon them.

Thinker
Needs
Understanding
Fulfilled By
Shared Concept

Evolution of Knowledge

Wardley Guide
Proposed
ConceptGenesis
The "Unknown Unknown". We are debating if this concept exists. High ambiguity, high potential.
Experimental
HypothesisCustom Built
The "Learning Phase". We are testing this definition in specific contexts. It is fluid and changes rapidly.
Active
Theory / AcceptedProduct (+Rental)
The "Standard". A reliable primitive. We use it without thinking. High trust, low cognitive load.

Intellectual Lineage

The concepts in this system are not arbitrary; they stand on the shoulders of giants. This index tracks the academic and strategic origins of our ubiquitous language, ensuring intellectual honesty and providing a path for deeper study.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Adapted
byAaron Beck(1960s)
Informed Concepts
Model Adaptation
Social Cognitive Theory
Adapted
byAlbert Bandura(Psychological Review, 1986)
Informed Concepts
Agency
The Extended Mind
Adapted
byAndy Clark & David Chalmers(Analysis, 1998)
Informed Concepts
Cognitive OffloadingExternalized FormAgentic Work
Human-AI Collaboration Patterns
Synthesized
byAnthropic(Claude Documentation, 2024-2025)
Informed Concepts
Agentic Work
The Ghost in the Machine
Adopted
byArthur Koestler(1967)
Informed Concepts
Holon
Direct Manipulation Interfaces
Adopted
byBen Shneiderman(ACM Computing Surveys, 1983)
Informed Concepts
Visual Node
Bloom's Taxonomy
Adopted
byBenjamin Bloom
Informed Concepts
Synthesis
Type Theory and Programming Languages
Adopted
byBenjamin Pierce
Informed Concepts
Primitive
Information Rules
Adopted
byCarl Shapiro & Hal Varian(1998)
Informed Concepts
Lock-in
Collected Papers
Adopted
byCharles Sanders Peirce(1931-1958)
Informed Concepts
Semiotics
Organizational Learning: A Theory of Action Perspective
Adopted
byChris Argyris & Donald Schön(1978)
Informed Concepts
Reflective Loop
The Innovator's Dilemma
Adapted
byClayton Christensen(1997)
Informed Concepts
Inertia
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Adapted
byDaniel Kahneman(2011)
Informed Concepts
The ThinkerInertia
The Design of Everyday Things
Adapted
byDon Norman
Informed Concepts
Interface ContractCognitive Bridge
Literate Programming
Adapted
byDonald Knuth(The Computer Journal, 1984)
Informed Concepts
Circuit
The Reflective Practitioner
Adapted
byDonald Schön(1983)
Informed Concepts
Externalized FormReflective Loop
Self-Determination Theory
Adopted
byEdward Deci & Richard Ryan(1985)
Informed Concepts
Agency
Cognition in the Wild
Adopted
byEdwin Hutchins(1995)
Informed Concepts
ExternalizationModel Convergence
Domain-Driven Design
Adapted
byEric Evans
Informed Concepts
ComponentBoundaryInterface Contract
The Cathedral and the Bazaar
Adapted
byEric S. Raymond(1999)
Informed Concepts
Lock-in
Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity
Adopted
byEtienne Wenger(1998)
Informed Concepts
Model Convergence
Formal Logic
Adopted
byEuclid / Aristotle
Informed Concepts
Axiom
Cognitive Offloading
Adopted
byEvan Risko & Sam Gilbert(Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2016)
Informed Concepts
Cognitive Offloading
Course in General Linguistics
Adopted
byFerdinand de Saussure(1916)
Informed Concepts
Semiotics
Platform Revolution
Adopted
byGeoffrey Parker, Marshall Van Alstyne, Sangeet Paul Choudary(2016)
Informed Concepts
Ecosystem
Dialectics
Adapted
byGeorg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
Informed Concepts
Synthesis
Aspect-Oriented Programming
Adapted
byGregor Kiczales(ECOOP, 1997)
Informed Concepts
Circuit
Truth and Method
Adapted
byHans-Georg Gadamer(1960)
Informed Concepts
Reflective Loop
Context Engineering
Adopted
byHarrison Chase(LangChain Blog, 2025)
Informed Concepts
Agentic Work
The Sciences of the Artificial
Adopted
byHerbert Simon
Informed Concepts
Design
Weak Signals
Adopted
byIgor Ansoff(1975)
Informed Concepts
Signal
The Knowledge-Creating Company
Adopted
byIkujiro Nonaka & Hirotaka Takeuchi(1995)
Informed Concepts
Externalization
Ecological Psychology
Adopted
byJ.J. Gibson / Don Norman
Informed Concepts
Affordance
Constructivism
Adopted
byJean Piaget
Informed Concepts
The Thinker
Genetic Epistemology
Adopted
byJean Piaget(1970)
Informed Concepts
Model Adaptation
The Theory of Economic Development
Adopted
byJoseph Schumpeter
Informed Concepts
Value Synthesis
The Scientific Method
Adopted
byKarl Popper
Informed Concepts
Design Hypothesis
The Logic of Scientific Discovery
Adapted
byKarl Popper
Informed Concepts
Methodology
Sensemaking in Organizations
Adopted
byKarl Weick(1995)
Informed Concepts
Collective Sensemaking
Cognitive Science
Adopted
byKenneth Craik / Philip Johnson-Laird
Informed Concepts
Mental Model
Hypothesis-Driven Development
Adapted
byLean Startup / Eric Ries
Informed Concepts
Design Hypothesis
Graph Theory
Adopted
byLeonhard Euler(1736)
Informed Concepts
Visual Node
Thought and Language
Adapted
byLev Vygotsky(1934)
Informed Concepts
ExternalizationModel Convergence
General Systems Theory
Adapted
byLudwig von Bertalanffy
Informed Concepts
ComponentBoundaryInterface ContractHolon
The Keystone Advantage
Adopted
byMarco Iansiti & Roy Levien(2004)
Informed Concepts
Ecosystem
Card-Based Design
Adopted
byMaterial Design / Google(2014)
Informed Concepts
Concept Card
Architecture Decision Records (ADRs)
Adapted
byMichael Nygard
Informed Concepts
Design Hypothesis
Competitive Advantage
Adopted
byMichael Porter
Informed Concepts
Value ChainCommoditization
Competitive Strategy
Adopted
byMichael Porter(1980)
Informed Concepts
Competition
Zettelkasten Method
Adapted
byNiklas Luhmann
Informed Concepts
Concept Card
Cybernetics
Adopted
byNorbert Wiener
Informed Concepts
Control
The Fifth Discipline
Adopted
byPeter Senge(1990)
Informed Concepts
Model ConvergenceSignalCollective Sensemaking
Elements of Semiology
Adopted
byRoland Barthes(1964)
Informed Concepts
Semiotics
Wardley Maps
Adopted
bySimon Wardley
Informed Concepts
AnchorUser NeedValue ChainComponentEvolutionGenesis StateControlValue SynthesisMarketCompetitionInertiaCommoditizationEcosystemLock-inSignal
Human-Computer Interaction
Adopted
byStuart Card, Thomas Moran, Allen Newell(The Psychology of Human-Computer Interaction, 1983)
Informed Concepts
Cognitive Bridge
Institutional Ecology, "Translations" and Boundary Objects
Adopted
bySusan Leigh Star & James Griesemer(Social Studies of Science, 1989)
Informed Concepts
Externalized Form
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Adapted
byThomas Kuhn
Informed Concepts
TheoryCollective Sensemaking
Thinker's Needs Guide
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
The Thinker
Synthesized from Wardley Evolution and System Dynamics
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
Component Lifecycle
Synthesized from General Systems Theory and Software Engineering Practice
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
Deprecation
Codebase Rules
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
Circuit
Design System
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
Visual NodeConcept Card
User Interface Design Experiment
Original
byVoid Team
Informed Concepts
Cognitive Bridge

Axiom of Utility: If a term is not actively used in the system logic or UI, it does not belong here.