Encoding

Encoding is all about how humans have learned to send information to each other.

In many ways, language itself is a form of encoding. What started as simple grunts to communicate basic needs—such as:

• Grunt: I am hungry.
• Grunt Grunt: I would like sex.
• Gruunnnt: Where is the bathroom?

—has developed into the rich, expressive modern languages we have today. Throughout history, humans have learned to express their needs in increasingly complex and nuanced ways, though we still often return to the same basic, fundamental needs.