– Generation of a thought pattern or image in the mind of an originator
– The description of that image, with a certain measure of precision, by a set of
aural or visual symbols
– The encoding of these symbols in a form that is suitable for transmission over
a physical medium of interest
– The transmission of the encoded symbols to the desired destination – The decoding and reproduction of the original symbols
– The recreation of the original thought pattern or image, with a definable
degradation in quality, in the mind of a recipient; the degradation is cased by
imperfections in the system