Autocatalytic Space

TomMunnecke's WalledGarden: AutocatalyticSpace, BeneGnosis, MalGnosis (2003-03-15)

An Autocatalytic space has the property that as it accrues more stuff, the space expands. For example, the addition of Amazon.com to the web made the web bigger, it didn't use up the space as a physical bookstore uses up shopping center space. http://www.munnecke.com/blog/archives/2002_10.html#000051 [link into large page]

The autocatalytic space is different from an autocatalytic network with respect to how it deals with the void. The void and the stuff coevolve in autocatalytic spaces, whereas autocatalytic networks only deal with the stuff in a space.

Whence "autocatalytic"? It suggests to me some sort of self modifying space [like SelfModifyingCode], and that sounds much more interesting than a bucket that expands when you put more stuff in it. -- MatthewAstley