Abstraction
This section defines how abstraction is used in system design.
An abstraction is a representation that differs from another by having one or more attributes removed.
Abstraction for many people is considered the language of artists and strange looking artifacts.
Humans perform abstraction almost effortlessly.
We are performing abstraction when we talk about a forest where a forest is referring to a set of similar but not identical trees.
We can talk about a tree in the back yard or trees in general or "treeness" which is the set of attributes that helps us distinguish trees from other things like tables.
Looking for defining attributes is what systems engineers do when describing system features.
Suppose we are designing an engine.
One of its features is performance.
The attribute that we assign to this feature for engines is peak power rated in horse power.
We might define a high performance engine to have 300-500 hp
We model this and other attributes to characterize the engine.
Since our model of the engine is abstract we don't include all its attributes like surface texture or aesthetic appearance.
In fact we only model the attributes necessary for our purpose.
So abstraction helps people categorize things into groups and helps systems engineers model necessary attributes of systems.
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