# container (object)

a thing that has a boundary and an inside where other matter can be kept

- Computed level: L6 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: L10  ·  Arena: container

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [boundary](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-boundary.limit), [inside](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-inside.spatial), [matter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-matter.substance), [keep](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-keep.maintenance)

**Through:** The boundary and inside work together to contain matter by maintaining it within a limited space.

**Novel properties:**
- containment
- persistent enclosure
- spatial retention

## Examples
- The Fukushima Daiichi reactor containment vessel held radioactive fuel during the 2011 meltdown, preventing total release into the atmosphere. *(engineering)*
- A human red blood cell maintains hemoglobin within its plasma membrane, enabling oxygen transport through the circulatory system. *(biology)*
- The Bitcoin blockchain's 1MB block limit from 2010–2017 constrained transaction throughput, shaping network scalability debates. *(computing)*

## Used by
- [cart](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-cart.transport) (L16)
- [liquid](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-liquid.state) (L15)
- [package](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-package.container) (L7)
- [plate is full](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-plate-is-full.capacity) (L14)
- [storage](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-storage.physical) (L7)

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-container.object*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-container.object.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*