Transformity

The concept of transformity was first introduced by David M. Scienceman in collaboration with Howard T. Odum. In 1987 Scienceman proposed that the phrases, 'energy quality', 'energy quality factor', and 'energy transformation ratio', all used by H.T.Odum, be replaced by the word 'transformity' (p. 261). This approach aims to solve a long standing issue about the relation of qualitative phenomena to quantitative phenomena often analysed in the physical sciences, which in turn is a synthesis of rationalism with phenomenology. That is to say that it aims to quantify quality.'a quantitative variable describing the measurable property of a form of energy, its ability to amplify as feedback, relative to the source energy consumed in its formation, under maximum power conditions. As a quantitative variable analogous to thermodynamic temperature, transformity requires specification of units.' (1987, p. 261. My emphasis).'the emergy of one type required to make a unit of energy of another type. For example, since 3 coal emjoules (cej) of coal and 1 cej of services are required to generate 1 J of electricity, the coal transformity of electricity is 4 cej/J'the term T r t h e t a {displaystyle Tr_{theta}} accounts for the Quality aspect of such information. The concept of transformity was first introduced by David M. Scienceman in collaboration with Howard T. Odum. In 1987 Scienceman proposed that the phrases, 'energy quality', 'energy quality factor', and 'energy transformation ratio', all used by H.T.Odum, be replaced by the word 'transformity' (p. 261). This approach aims to solve a long standing issue about the relation of qualitative phenomena to quantitative phenomena often analysed in the physical sciences, which in turn is a synthesis of rationalism with phenomenology. That is to say that it aims to quantify quality.