science

LoCoS

LoCoS is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand LoCoS rather than just read about it. In short: LoCoS (short for Lovers Communication System) is a pictorial language developed by Yukio Ota of Japan in 1964. It was meant as communication for the deaf and mute as well as for the illiterate.

Key takeaways

LoCoS belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect LoCoS to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of LoCoS from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

LoCoS (short for Lovers Communication System) is a pictorial language developed by Yukio Ota of Japan in 1964. It was meant as communication for the deaf and mute as well as for the illiterate. It is a universal and simple language, and as Ota put it, "It should emphasize the importance of communication among all the people of all the countries of the world."

Symbols There are eight major symbols in LoCoS.

Words Words are made by combining different symbols in different ways. For example if you put a dot inside a circle it will represent today, or if you put a fish in an open ring shape it will be a fisherman.

There are around 80 words that are official according to Yukio Ota. Words can be created as long as they follow the basic word syntax.

Sentences It's very good to meet you.

It's sad you can't stay any longer.

But this short stay was very interesting.

We learnt lots from you.

Hope you were happy.

We hope you'll succeed.

Hope to see you.

Love you lots.

Bibliography Bliss, C.K. (1965). Semantography (Blissymbolics). Sydney, Australia: Semantography Publications, second edition, 882 pp. The book presents a system for universal writing, or pasigraphy. Ota, Yukio (1973). «LoCoS: An Experimental Pictorial Language.» Icographic, No. 6, pp. 15–19. Published by ICOGRADA, the International Council of Graphic Design Associations, based in London. Ota, Yukio (1987). Pictogram Design, Kashiwashobo, Tokyo, ISBN 4-7601-0300-7, 1987. The author presents a world-wide collection of case studies in visible language signage systems, including LoCoS.

External links

Lovers Communication System

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with LoCoS

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what LoCoS claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to LoCoS before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about LoCoS ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of LoCoS

In research: LoCoS appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses LoCoS in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: LoCoS is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1964 introductions, Auxiliary and educational artificial scripts, Constructed languages, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for LoCoS outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study LoCoS in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what LoCoS means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain LoCoS out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is LoCoS in simple terms?

LoCoS (short for Lovers Communication System) is a pictorial language developed by Yukio Ota of Japan in 1964. It was meant as communication for the deaf and mute as well as for the illiterate.

Why does LoCoS matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study LoCoS?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on LoCoS.