While in school (years ago), I heard mythology described as an attempt by some cultures to explain various natural phenomena. That gave me the impression that a member of such a culture would believe in what a myth from his culture told him. I thought this made cultures with myths seem naive. Did people really believe that the sky is carried on the shoulders of a giant god named Atlas?[1]
Maybe there’s a better definition than what I heard while growing up. The Merriam-Webster web site defines mythology as an “allegorical narrative.”[2] That makes much more sense, stories containing symbols of other things. But why go through all that trouble?
In the computer industry, there is something called data compression that can allow data to take up less space or other resources.[3] It removes redundant information in a way that preserves the essential content of the original information. There are many algorithms for data compression, such as run-length encoding or Huffman encoding. Also the popular Zip file format is used for compressed computer files.
A common example of data compression involving people, is ordering an item from a restaurant menu. Suppose you want breakfast number 17, which includes an omelette, sausage, and home fries. You may or may not know what number 17 means to the restaurant before going in, but you can refer to that breakfast of multiple items with just a number after consulting the menu. Several symbols have been replaced with one, which takes up less resources in your communication. So the restaurant is using a form of data compression.
Replacing several symbols or ideas with one symbol has its uses in individuals too. Referring to a known item by name is generally easier than explaining what it is in detail. This helps communication and learning. Using names is also useful for identifying important people, such as a family member or even Santa Claus.
I think one goal of mythology is to encode concepts into symbols that can be more easily recognized and understood. Since there is often less learning involved when using familiar concepts, I think the symbolism of mythology helps the brain to use fewer resources when storing the myths. More information can be stored with the same small number of symbols, so mythology seems to involve data compression. Yes, mythology is more than just data compression, but it’s interesting to see a connection between something so old and something as modern as computer technology.
References
[1] https://www.thoughtco.com/greek-god-who-carried-world-shoulders-117215
[2] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mythology
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_compression
(c) Copyright 2019 by Mike Ferrell
Odd STEM 