Studying sign processes in the emergence of communication

Abstract

Communication depends on the production and interpretation of representations, but the study of representational processes underlying communication finds little discussion in computational experiments. Here we present an experiment on the emergence of both interpretation and production of multiple representations, with multiple referents, where referential processes can be tracked. Results show the dynamics of semiotic processes during the evolution of artificial creatures and the emergence of a variety of semiotic processes, such as sign production, sign interpretation, and sign-object-interpretant relations.