By abstraction I mean a contrivance of symbols (ie things to which meaning is assigned). Be those symbols ideas, words, patterns of magnetized dots or whatever.

By abstraction I mean a contrivance of symbols (ie things to which meaning is assigned). Be those symbols ideas, words, patterns of magnetized dots or whatever. Sight, sound, taste, etc are not that. (I suppose even words are not necessarily symbols. I mean, if you don't assign meaning, if you don't interpret it that way, then a word is just a unique pattern of squiggles)