# example (illustration)

a thing that is used to show a rule

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

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [items](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-items.object), [law](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-law.rule), [rules](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-rules.social), [show](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-show.visual), [use](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-use.application)

**Through:** an object is used in a way that makes a rule visible

**Novel properties:**
- demonstration of pattern
- exemplary instance
- illustrative application

## Examples
- The International Space Station maintains orbit through periodic reboosts by visiting spacecraft. *(engineering)*
- E. coli bacteria replicate DNA semi-conservatively, demonstrating the rule of complementary base pairing. *(biology)*
- The Python Enhancement Proposal (PEP) 8 style guide governs code formatting across the Python open-source community. *(computing)*

## Used by
- [sample](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-sample.material) (L11)

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