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On the relation between the Maximum Entropy Principle and the principle of Least Effort: The continuous case

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  • Agouzal, Abdelatif
  • Lafouge, Thierry

Abstract

The Maximum Entropy Principle (MEP) maximizes the entropy provided that the effort remains constant. The Principle of Least Effort (PLE) minimizes the effort provided that the entropy remains constant. The paper investigates the relation between these two principles. In some kinds of effort functions, called admissible, it is shown that these two principles are equivalent. The results are illustrated by the size–frequency statistical distribution met in infometry in Information Production Processes.

Suggested Citation

  • Agouzal, Abdelatif & Lafouge, Thierry, 2008. "On the relation between the Maximum Entropy Principle and the principle of Least Effort: The continuous case," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 2(1), pages 75-88.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:infome:v:2:y:2008:i:1:p:75-88
    DOI: 10.1016/j.joi.2007.10.002
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    Cited by:

    1. Lafouge, Thierry & Agouzal, Abdelatif, 2015. "The source-effort coverage of an exponential informetric process," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 156-168.
    2. Agouzal, Abdellatif & Lafouge, Thierry & Bertin, Marc, 2024. "Relationship between the principle of least effort and the average cost of information in a zipfian context," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 18(1).

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