arXiv · 2503.20035
The problem of infinite information flow
Abstract
We study conditional mutual information (cMI) between a pair of variables $X,Y$ given a third one $Z$ and derived quantities including transfer entropy (TE) and causation entropy (CE) in the dynamically relevant context where $X=T(Y,Z)$ is determined by $Y,Z$ via a deterministic transformation $T$. Under mild continuity assumptions on their distributions, we prove a zero-infinity dichotomy for cMI for a wide class of $T$, which gives a yes-or-no answer to the question of information flow as quantified by TE or CE. Such an answer fails to distinguish between the relative amounts of information flow. To resolve this problem, we propose a discretization strategy and a conjectured formula to discern the \textit{relative ambiguities} of the system, which can serve as a reliable proxy for the relative amounts of information flow. We illustrate and validate this approach with numerical evidence.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Zheng Bian, Erik M. Bollt. 2025-03-25. The problem of infinite information flow. https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.20035
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.